Schuylkill County VISION just launched a new initiative designed to get more people outdoors.
It’s called 570 GO and the goal is for participants to spend 570 hours outdoors over the course of the next year. 570 GO officially launched on May 7 so, technically, you’re already behind.
This project is a partnership between Schuylkill County VISION and Lehigh Valley Health Network.
VISION is using a rather liberal definition of an outdoor activity, too, so it shouldn’t be difficult to rack up the 570 hours over the course of the next year. That’s about 11 hours a week or 90 minutes per day.
What counts as outdoor activity? Literally anything outdoors: Playing sports, general recreation like walking, hiking and biking, going to concerts (outdoor ones, of course), attending picnics … you get the idea. The key here is that wherever it is, it’s not confined by four walls and roof.
The aim of this program addresses a growing problem with people today – especially young adults – and that’s living an isolated lifestyle, which can lead to loneliness. VISION says through the course of the next year, it’ll be suggesting social gathering spots (aka “third places”) where people can socialize and also rack up hours to get closer to the goal of 570.
VISION cites a US Surgeon General study that says lacking social connections can actually lead to an early death.
Tracking Your Hours in the 570 GO Project
To help you track the 570 hours, VISION has created a simple checkerboard-style worksheet. When you spend an hour outdoors, simply check or fill in a box on the sheet.
You can get the sheet at the Schuylkill County VISION office, at its website, at the Explore Schuylkill office, the Schuylkill YMCA, at participating public libraries, or simply by downloading it from this page.
Anyone who returns a completed worksheet between March 31, 2025, and May 31, 2025 will be eligible for a 570 GO gift from Explore Schuylkill.
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