January 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 51

underlying causes of these deaths,
citing a quote from one of his mentors: " Healthy communities are a
garden to grow people in. "
As Lipsky spoke to the audience
about how we are being affected by
the events of 2020, the live chat box
filled with comments, indicating that
the thoughts and feelings of emotional trauma and being overwhelmed
she described were " hitting close to
home. " Lipsky went on to provide
strategies for " finding a sustainable
way through, " including sharing
the Trauma Stewardship Institute's
Tiny Survival Guide (tinyurl.com/
y35njb3o). One such strategy that
park and recreation professionals
are familiar with, Lipsky says, is going outside. " Throughout your day,
if you can punctuate your day with
making sure you are, if possible, outside as much as possible, " she says,
" it can be immensely helpful - even
for a couple minutes here and there. "

Day Three General Session:
Upstream Solutions
On Thursday, October 29, general session keynote speaker Dan
Heath shared a vision for " moving
upstream " and addressing the root
of a problem, instead of only reacting to it.
" We should be moving upstream,
devoting more of our time, more of
our resources to preventing problems before they happen, " says
Heath, co-author of the book, Made
to Stick, and senior fellow at Duke
University's Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship. He discussed the true value of
parks and recreation, revealed by
the upstream solutions those in the
field provide for many problems.

" Parks and rec departments, they
are the ultimate producer of positive
externalities, " Heath says. " Because
of the work you do, you're preventing downstream problems, and I
believe that you deserve to get more
investment because you're producing positive benefits that are outside
the narrow scope of your work. "
Investing in parks and recreation
helps reduce crime, improve health,
create community connections and
boost the economy. The community benefits generated by parks and
recreation means that professionals
in the field are " upstream heroes, "
the individuals who " keep the day
from needing to be saved, " he says.
Heath's presentation was followed by the panel discussion,
" Parks and Recreation: Agents for
Climate Resilience, " with some of
these upstream heroes. During this
discussion, moderator Kristin Baja,
programs director for Climate Resilience at the Urban Sustainability Directors Network, defined resilience
hubs as the " spaces to enhance and
support community cohesiveness

NRPA Virtual attendees were able to
visit exhibit hall " booths " to connect
with exhibitors.

and then strengthen those communities' ability to work together. "
Panel speakers then discussed the
role their spaces and organizations
play in providing " upstream solutions " to climate change. Speakers
were Norma García, director of
the County of Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation and
the Los Angeles County Regional
Parks and Open Space District; Kelli Ondracek, natural resources manager for the Houston Parks and Recreation Department; Alyssa Cobb
Konon, deputy commissioner for
the Planning and Development Division of New York City Parks; and
Guillermo (Gil) Penalosa, founder
and chair of 8 80 Cities.

Education Sessions
and Coﬀee Talks
Maintaining Mental and
Physical Health
Health and wellness was a theme

PA R K S A N D R E C R E AT I O N .O R G | J A N UA RY 2 02 1 |

Parks & Recreation

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January 2021 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January 2021 - Parks & Recreation
