Naturist/Nudist Special Interest Groups

Existing naturist/nudist special interest groups

Online discussion group about special interest groups

Possible special interest group themes and topics

Introduction

What do you have in common with other people just because they also happen to like being naked?

Have you ever had that question from someone to whom you are trying to explain naturism, and they just aren't "getting it"? Indeed, what is the point of taking any special time or effort just to be with other people who like to be naked?

Naturists and anyone else who enjoys not wearing clothes knows the answer. Being naked is its own reward, but it's even more rewarding and satisfying if it's shared with others. In other words, socializing, which is something most people like to do, given a congenial environment.

However, if a fondness of being naked is the only thing that people have in common, conversations can tend to drag after awhile. Longer lasting friendships are built on having more than just one thing in common with someone else.

Wouldn't it be nice if you could find people who share a number of your interests, in addition to nudity? In the past, nudist and naturist clubs and organizations have not been as helpful as they could be at this.

Nudity is wonderful and all that, but it isn't everything in life! Just like anyone else, people who enjoy nudity have many diverse interests. Nudity itself might not be particularly high on the list. Nevertheless, it might be fun to participate in one's other hobbies and recreational interests without having to wear clothes, and in a group where everyone else also enjoys nudity.

That is the idea of Special Interest Groups for naturists and nudists. A number of them already exist -- there's a list below.

But at the same time, there could always be many more. All it takes is a few people who share an interest in some special hobby, pastime, or type of recreation, along with an enjoyment of being naked. In fact, this need not be limited to avocational interests. There could be special interest groups with vocational and professional themes as well.

If this idea appeals to you and you'd like to know how to actually go about starting a special interest group for one or more of your interests, be sure to read the rest of this page. But if you're not ready to start such a group yourself, here's a list of some of the special interest groups that already exist. Maybe there's one that's just right for you. It's worth taking a look...

Existing naturist/nudist special interest groups

Hobbies

Configurations: Naturist Artists and Models: Naturist Society Special Interest Group. Focus is on photography, figure sketching, modeling and socializing. Also open to performance artists. Other Web sites for the SIG are here and here.
Yoga Bare: A group for all those who love to do yoga in the nude (and clothed too). Meditation techniques are also discussed.

Outdoor recreation

Naturist Hikers: A Yahoo discussion group about nude hiking, as well as related activities like camping, fishing, and biking that can be enjoyed while naked.
The Outdoor Recreation Interest Group of the Naturist Society: Yahoo discussion group for the TNS SIG dealing with all forms of outdoor nude recreation, especially hiking, canoeing, camping, and skiing.
The Paddling Bares Canoe Club: For naturist canoeists and kayakers, especially in the New Jersey area.
Nude Canoeists: For all those canoeists who like to canoe nude or skinnydip along the way. More information here.

Online discussion group about special interest groups

For brevity, we'll use the acronym SIG for Special Interest Group. Professional and other types of affinity organizations often have SIGs that cater to subareass of the professional or avocational purpose. In some cases these areas might even have little or nothing to do with the focus of the parent organization -- because they exist to provide another means of socializing within the group.

The purpose of setting up Naturist SIGs is to provide for this kind of social interaction within the community of nude-friendly people everywhere.

Of course, at least one person needs to take an initiative to start and be responsible for the overall operation of the group. This might involve as little as starting and moderating an online group of the sort hosted by Yahoo and similar services.

In order to foster the establishment and promotion of special interest groups of this sort, we've set up a Yahoo Group called NaturistSIGs just for the purpose of talking about how and why to go about forming a group for your special interest. What sorts of things could we talk about on this discussion group? Here are some examples:

The value to naturism/nudism of establishing a network of special interest groups.
How to start and run a special interest group.
Possible subject and focus areas.
Behavior and posting guidelines for participants.
How to announce and promote a group to the public at large (including the non-naturist public).
Promoting the idea of Naturist SIGs within the naturist/nudist community itself.
How to explain naturism/nudism to skeptics.
How is a special interest group different from other naturist/nudist groups based on geographic or demographic criteria?
What are the best ways and places to host online discussion groups?
How to find an organizer for a group if you can't do it yourself.
Developing guidelines for the operation of SIGs to facilitate a quality experience for all participants.

If this idea sounds interesting to you, let's get together and talk about how to make this happen. Just click on the link above if you want to join the discussion. Regardless of whether you want to start and/or operate a SIG yourself, if you want to talk about it, this is a good place to do it. (Note that moderator approval will be required before your membership is enabled.)

Possible special interest group themes and topics

In order to get the ball rolling here's a sampling of topical areas that Naturist SIGs might deal with:

Cooking
Gardening
Hiking
Camping
Boating and sailing
Travel
Books
Science fiction
Writing
Art, painting, and sculpture
Philosophy
Science
Law
Medicine
Small business

Some of these areas are rather broad, while others are narrower. Within the broad areas, there is certainly room for many subareas. The only limit in this regard is the participation of enough nude-friendly people who share the interest in question.

Ideally, it would be possible to form such SIGs in every geographical area so that real life meetings are possible and convenient. But, at least initially, this is unrealistic, for most interest areas, except perhaps in a large metropolitan region.

Online discussion forums, such as Yahoo Groups, provide an electronic alternative which can allow this idea to get off the ground. Yahoo Groups (as well as similar services) provides ready-made facilities for the exchange of message (both via email and in a "bulletin board" format), a collection of files, bookmarks to relevant Internet sites, real-time chat, member profiles, etc.

After a group is established online, it can be extended to offine interaction as well, using printed newsletters and occasional real-life meetings and gatherings, for example.

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Last updated: May 10, 2003