October 2020 - Parks & Recreation - 75

Parks and Recreation, San Francisco Recreation and Parks, Minneapolis (Minnesota) Park and
Recreation Board, and Portland
(Oregon) Parks and Recreation -
are developing equity initiatives to
ensure that their parks are focusing
on resources that best serve these
changing demographics. Creating
a racial equity strategy provides
a framework, tools and resources
that also can create social equity solutions. During this session,
you will learn strategies for gathering the appropriate data to ensure
that the predominant race and income of an area does not predict
the quality and/or quantity of its
parks, and that parks in diverse,
low-income areas best reflect the
community needs in that area.
Speaker: Jai Cole, Maryland-National
Capital Park and Planning Commission, Montgomery Parks
Track: Social Equity and Inclusion

The Esports Experience:
Determining the Best Esports
Programs to Build and
Strengthen Communities
Esports, or competitive video gaming,
not only has grown to be an impressive
billion-dollar industry, but also is now
known as the " new social network, "
attracting multi-generational players
and spectators alike. For park and
recreation professionals, this means
esports can have tremendous impacts
on equity and health and wellness
within communities. The opportunities to bring esports experiences to
the population at large are endless.
From recreational esports programs
to STEM/STEAM learning, to tapping into the sports tourism business,
understanding all the possibilities to
bring inclusive and innovative esports

experiences to communities will be
the focus at this interactive lecture.
The presenters will provide field-tested
and proven concepts from real-life
case studies of esports experiences
they've activated over the past year. In
addition, they will share best practices
and guidelines to determine the best
approach to launching a successful
esports program for your community.
Speakers: Karen Mendoza, Global
Youth Enterprises; Matthew Reiter,
Maricopa Esports; Scott Novis, Bravous
Youth Esports and GameTruck, LLC
Track: Recreation and Sports
Programming

Did COVID-19 Make
Us Essential?
Every park and recreation professional knows how essential our
agencies' services are to the health
and wellness of communities across
the nation of every size and composition, but decision-makers and
voters don't always connect what
we do with the value we bring. At
no time in recent history has our
agencies' value been more obvious
than during this current COVID-19
pandemic. This session will explore
how agencies across the country
have responded to the crisis with
both in-house and partner programming for those relegated to their
homes and how agencies can capitalize on that work to strengthen
their value as an essential service.
Speakers: Janet Bartnik, Mountain
Recreation; Cortney Weinstock, Baltimore City Recreation and Parks
Track: Health and Wellness

Next Practices for Parks and
Recreation in a COVID-19 World
As we start thinking of what a
post-pandemic world may look like

in this coming decade, this session
will help attendees think of next
practices they want to shape in order to design an inclusive, welcoming and financially/environmentally sustainable park and recreation
agency. During these increasingly
unpredictable times, with changing
demographics and technologies,
this session will share insights for
how to build an agency culture
and mindset that can innovate and
thrive in chaos and embrace change
as park and recreation agencies
look to continue playing the role of
essential components that sustain
the community's very fabric and
way of life.
Speaker: Neelay Bhatt, PROS Consulting, Inc.
Track: Leadership and Management

Park Foundations and Friends
Groups: Filling Budgetary Gaps
Through Alternative Sources of
Funds
Park and recreation leaders are facing
ever-expanding budgetary challenges
due to the COVID-19 pandemic and
resulting economic recession. Local
park foundations and friends groups
can play a crucial role in filling these
budget gaps while, at the same time,
raising awareness of the essential value of local parks and recreation in the
areas of conservation, health and wellness, and equity. Moderated by NRPA
President and CEO Kristine Stratton,
a panel of mayors and city managers
will share their experiences and offer
best practices that led to strong working relationships with foundations
that maximize alternative sources of
park and recreation funding.
Speaker(s): Kristine Stratton, NRPA
Track: Leadership and
Management

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Parks & Recreation

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October 2020 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2020 - Parks & Recreation
