OSI (The Outdoor Safety Institute) was created in 1996 to meet the need for increasing accountability in safety management planning in adventure activities. The New Zealand Government’s Health and Safety legislation, introduced in 1993, threw the informal outdoor adventure and recreation sector into chaos. To adventure providers became increasingly clear that their planning of outdoor of adventures needed to show what consideration had been given to the risks involved and how they would be managed.

OSI is a resource for both commercial and volunteer outdoor providers to access quality advice and practical assistance in the best way to protect adventurers under their care.

Every aspect of outdoor adventure risk (policy, guidelines, management and training) can be assisted by the OSI. Whether providers are preparing  a new adventure programme, wanting to review their current provision, seeking a view on legislative exposure or wanting to ensure they have everything in place should things go wrong, OSI can provide expert assistance.

Specialized skills are at the heart of field-oriented risk management systems, and are one of the most tangible means to a high quality experience for your clientele.

OSI is committed to offering the highest quality skills training available for committed outdoor professionals and adventurers. in safety management processes in adventure activities.

OSI scrutinizes the inner workings of your program’s risk management system and provides insightful, contemporary and practical recommendations designed to improve the safety and quality of your program.

OSI provides the collaborative review services of some of the finest risk management resources in the Outdoor and Adventure sector globally.

OSI auditors are Outdoorsmark approved.

Programme Risk Management documentation is at the heart of every quality management system.

OSI provides the processes for your organisations Safety Management Plan documentation development, customized to the unique needs of your outdoor or adventure-based program, and can help your organization improve the alignment between your mission and your risk management practices.

Continuing Professional Development should be an organisations on-going commitment to broadening or further developing safety competence in its staff.

Outdoor safety competence relates to the combination of training, skills, experience and knowledge that a person has and their ability to apply these to perform a task safely.

Core training or professional development is usually central to the process of acquiring competence. Outdoor leaders may have a deeper or broader combination of training, skills, experience and knowledge beyond the base level required in a specific role.

OSI provides comprehensive training in a wide range of safety management skills and knowledge. From planning and implementation to policy and legislation, OSI suggests that competent risk management requires experience and skills to the advanced or mastery level. Ongoing training development is critical to achieving this.

Emergencies occur every day. Planning ahead can minimize the risks to your organisation, staff and clients.

If you don’t prepare, you will incur more damage.

OSI will look at your existing crisis management-related plans while conducting a vulnerability audit (the first step in crisis preparedness), and consider  the many communications issues related to crisis/disaster response.

The basic steps of effective crisis communications are not difficult, but they require advance work in order to minimize damage. The slower the response, the more damage is incurred. So if you’re serious about crisis preparedness and response, ask OSI to  develop or audit your Crisis Plan before any crisis occurs.

OSI has been a leader is adventure safety research since its inception.

Until the past decade, New Zealand outdoor adventure providers relied solely on a system of self-regulation based on shared ethical principles and generally accepted safety practices to ensure safety in adventure activity delivery.

Increasingly, using scientific research practices and inference, undertaken by outdoor educators and adventure activity scholars using applied theoretical paradigms of safety from other risk industries, has resulted in sound evidence for proven ways to reduce risk and improve safety systems.

OSI has been at the forefront of such activities in risk management for over 20 years.