October 2019 - Parks & Recreation - 29

man rights. Social discrimination against the LGBTQ+
community has been associated with high rates of psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, suicide and obesity.
Immigrants and refugees report experiencing intense
feelings of loss after leaving their native country and
may even go through a period of cultural bereavement
and distress. In addition, refugees and immigrants face
barriers around job opportunities, housing, healthcare
and language, making it difficult to acclimate to a new
culture and life.
At the beginning of this initiative, NRPA surveyed
park and recreation professionals to gauge where agencies stood in relation to inclusive practices. The survey
asked what was being offered in terms of inclusive access to recreational facilities, programs serving a variety of community members and where there were gaps.
Nearly 500 agencies responded to the survey, which
identified that while there are many positive trends
around inclusion in parks and recreation, there is significant room to grow. In addition, agencies identified
shared challenges around funding, staffing, facility
space shortages, and a lack of staff training.

In two years since the launch of Parks for
Inclusion, NRPA programs have reached
1.7 million people in our target audiences,
surpassing our original goal of reaching
1 million people. NRPA is on track to reach
more than 2.5 million people by 2020,
gathering success stories and best practices
and identifying the need for further
resources along the way.
policy in place and how to engage staff and the community in developing a policy.
As NRPA moves into the final year of this three-year
initiative, we will continue to act on our mission of ensuring that everyone has access to the benefits of parks
and recreation through resource development, funding
opportunities and chances to network with park and
recreation peers to share best practices. If you are interested in sharing your agency's inclusion policy, send a
copy to Maureen Acquino at macquino@nrpa.org.
Maureen Acquino is an NRPA Health and Wellness Program
Manager (macquino@nrpa.org).

Responding Through Resources
In response to these needs, NRPA created the Parks
for Inclusion online database (www.nrpa.org/ourwork/partnerships/initiatives/parks-for-inclusion/
parks-for-inclusion-resources) to house resources that
support inclusive practices in park and recreation agencies and within facilities. These resources, developed by
NRPA, partner organizations and leaders in the field,
include toolkits, assessments, online tools and case
studies. For example, you'll find Parks for Inclusion
one-pagers, which are quick fact sheets about the challenges historically marginalized audiences face, how
this impacts their wellbeing, and what park and rec
agencies can do to promote positive health outcomes.
One of the biggest needs identified in the survey was
a gap in the number of park and recreation agencies
that have formal inclusion policies. NRPA developed
the Parks for Inclusion Best Practice Guide to Developing an Inclusive Policy (www.nrpa.org/our-work/part
nerships/initiatives/parks-for-inclusion/policyguide) to address this gap. This guide and supplemental resources were designed to help agencies create and implement inclusive policies in local parks
and recreation. It highlights why inclusion in parks
and recreation matters, why it's important to have a

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Parks & Recreation

October 2019 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2019 - Parks & Recreation