Open Space Radio: Parks and Recreation Trends

NRPA has always been a champion for pollinators, but in the past few years as bee and monarch populations have seen scary rates of decline, we’ve stepped up our involvement in helping to save pollinators. At the recent National Pollinator Garden Network (NPGN) annual meeting, NRPA’s Rich Dolesh heard Kedar Narayan, age 9, tell his amazing story of how he developed an app and a board game to bring awareness to the decline of pollinators and ways that kids and their families could help.

In today’s episode, we chat with Ava DeBovis and Daniel Hatcher from the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. The Alliance works with NRPA on Commit to Health — our program to increase healthy eating and physical activity during out-of-school time programs managed by park and recreation departments. Ava and Daniel address common barriers park and recreation staff may feel when attempting to create healthier out-of-school time and provide easy and practical solutions for overcoming them.

On October 10, 2017, the Trust for Public Land (TPL), the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) and the Urban Land Institute (ULI) came together to launch a campaign called 10-Minute Walk.

We’ve all been there. All of a sudden, a normal conversation takes a difficult turn and we find ourselves at a loss. Do we fight? Do we leave the conversation all together and avoid the offending person for as long as possible? These conversations are hard and it’s easy to just avoid them or walk away. However, we’re missing out on some prime growing and learning opportunities when we avoid instead of engage.

In this third and final installment of our series on drones in parks, we speak with Rich Dolesh, NRPA’s Vice President of Strategic Initiatives on the future of drones in parks. In part one, we looked at local, state and federal policies as well as resources for land managers. In part two, we spoke with a park director and how her agency has handled drones in their parks system.

In this episode of Open Space Radio, we continue our three-part series on drones in parks. In the second segment, I speak with Evie Kirkwood, Director of St. Joseph County Parks in Indiana.

A topic as complex as drones in parks couldn’t be covered in just one episode, so we we’re launching a three-part series to tackle this topic by interviewing experts in the field with three different perspectives. Part 1. Policy, Drone Zones and Resources for Land Managers Part 2. Ways Park Managers Are Handling Drones Part 3. Opportunities and the Future of Drones in Parks In part one, I chat with Chad Budreau – Public Relations and Government Affairs Director for the Academy of Model Aeronau

This week we’re discussing what’s been on top of all of our minds over the past week or so — hurricane Harvey and the devastating destruction it’s wrought on Texas, Louisiana and the Gulf Shore.

For the first time in 26 years, all of the US will be treated to some form of an eclipse on Monday, August 21 and parks will be the perfect place to view it.

NRPA staff members share their opinions about a recent Wall Street Journal article that explores how Americans are staying put even though moving might bring them more opportunity. We discuss how this trend is affecting parks and recreation and our country as a whole.

Today’s episode covers three trending topics that have been in the news lately — Pokémon Go and augmented reality games in parks, recreation fees for public land use and cool streets.

In this episode we interview Ron Morander, General Manager for Morgan’s Wonderland and Morgan’s Inspiration Island. In addition to the unique features of this waterpark (which include air-powered, water-safe wheelchairs), we cover funding, reaction from the community and beyond, and advice for others who are looking to include ultra-accessible elements into their parks.

Open Space Radio is your go to Podcast for learning about the latest trends and news in parks and recreation. This episode covers what you can expect to hear from us each week.