A Milestone for the Outdoor Industry: Outdoor Adventure Leaders recognised on the Occupation Shortage List

In a major step for the outdoor industry, Outdoor Adventure Leaders / Guides have been included in the latest release of the Jobs & Skills Australia (JSA) Occupation Shortage List. This inclusion marks a turning point — validating long-standing efforts to recognise the shortages and elevate the role of outdoor education, adventure tourism and recreation and legitimise it as a vital profession. Here’s what this means, why it matters, and what the future might hold.

For many years, advocates in outdoor industry have argued that the work of leading, instructing, and facilitating outdoor adventure experiences is undervalued and under-resourced. Despite its contributions to wellbeing, environmental awareness, youth development, and tourism, the domain often operated “on the edge” of formal recognition.

By being included on the Occupation Shortage List, Outdoor Adventure Leaders / Guides now get:

1. Visibility in national workforce planning

   Their inclusion signals to government, educators, and industry that this occupation is in demand and that Australia lacks enough qualified people to meet that demand.

2. Stronger case for funding and training

   With formal recognition, state and federal bodies may be more inclined to support certificate and diploma programs linked to outdoor leadership, increase student places, provide subsidies, or create incentives for RTOs (Registered Training Organisations) to expand courses.

3. Better migration and workforce flexibility

   Inclusion often helps shape how the occupation is treated under skilled migration schemes or regional recruitment needs, making it easier to address shortfalls through international recruitment where needed.

4. Professional legitimacy

   For current and future outdoor leaders, the designation helps shift public and institutional perception — from “extra-curricular guide” or “instructor hobbyist” to a bona fide, recognised profession.

   
   

This inclusion didn’t happen by accident. Several factors and persistent efforts combined to make the case compelling:

• Data & the Outdoor Industry Census

  Evidence from staff numbers and vacancy trends, recruiting reports, and consultations with employers helped build the statistical argument that there is a shortage of qualified leaders.

• Industry Advocacy & Stakeholder Engagement

  Outdoor organisations, associations, training providers, and practitioners combined their voice through the peak bodies to lobby to ensure the occupation was included in submissions to JSA, HumanAbility and related agencies. Their voices ensured that lived experience and workforce challenges were heeded.

• Showcasing Value & Outcomes

  By highlighting the broader social, health, environmental, and educational benefits that well-led outdoor programs deliver, proponents drew attention to the return on investment — not just for participants but for communities and public policy.

Challenges & The Road Ahead

Recognition is a major step — but it's not the finish line. Some challenges remain:

• It will be crucial to ensure training, funding and regulation keep pace, rather than letting this recognition become symbolic. We need to maintain the momentum.

• Outdoor leadership needs are often regional or remote. Ensuring that training, resources, and job opportunities are decentralised — not just concentrated in major cities — is key.

• As more providers enter the space, maintaining high standards, safety, competence, and consistency will be essential.

• Many outdoor leaders work across education, tourism, recreation, conservation, youth work, and health. Strengthening those interdisciplinary links will help the occupation stay resilient and relevant.

The inclusion of Outdoor Adventure Leaders / Guides in the Jobs & Skills Australia Occupation Shortage List is more than symbolic: it’s a validation that this work is essential, valued, and in demand. It opens doors — for professionalisation, funding, migration pathways, and broader recognition of the impact that well-led outdoor experiences bring to individuals, communities, and the environment.

Now the task is to build on this success: translate recognition into resources, pathways, and sustained growth.