Building joy, resilience, and strength through climbing & community.

Kinship Climbing Collective is a free rock climbing and leadership development program for young women and gender expansive youth in NYC.

KCC’s curriculum is designed to help participants recognize their own strength and realize their potential through rock climbing. The KCC program empowers students to become not just climbers, but leaders in both their communities and the outdoors.

KCC is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. We currently serve youth from 10 New York City public schools and have built a community that provides a safe space for dialogue around issues related to gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality and other dimensions of identity. KCC believes in gender inclusivity and our program is open to gender expansive youth.

  • A young Latina woman smiles while climbing an outdoor cliff

  • Three young participants look on while wearing rock climbing helmets

  • A young Latina woman in glasses pauses on a rock climb to smile at the camera

  • A group of students and mentors pause on a winter hike to pose smilingly for the camera

Apply to Join Kinship

Kinship Climbing Collective is open to NYC public high school young women and gender non-conforming youth. KCC is a free program, and includes full membership and gear rentals at The Cliffs at LIC climbing gym.

Kinship Climbing Collective will meet one Friday per month at The Cliffs at LIC in Long Island City, Queens. The year will culminate in a series of outdoor climbing trips where participants will be able to test their year of hard work outside on real rock.

Apply to join Kinship for our 2023 - 2024 school year! Applications are open now through Friday, September 29 at 11:59PM.

Join us for our Meet & Greet Session

If you’re interested in joining Kinship this year, but want to learn more, please join us for an in-person info session on Friday, September 22 at The Cliffs at LIC: 11-11 44th Dr., Queens, NY 11101.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet some of our mentors and current students, try climbing, and ask us any questions you have about the program!

The Cliffs at LIC is a wheelchair-accessible facility. If you need any other accommodations to attend, please let us know in your RSVP form.

Volunteer Opportunities

Kinship Climbing Collective is completely volunteer-run. Our volunteers help provide climbing instruction, mentorship, logistical support, and good vibes to the Kinship community.

If you are woman or gender expansive climber in the NYC area and are able to attend monthly sessions at The Cliffs at LIC on Fridays from 5PM - 7:30PM, please apply to be a new mentor below.

Please note that we receive many volunteer inquiries, and may not be able to accept all volunteer applicants.

Returning mentors, please scroll down to the “Returning Mentor Application.”

Returning to the Kinship community?

Returning mentors, please fill out your applications for the 2023 - 2024 school year at the link below.