World Parks Academy Webinar: The Future of Urban Parks: The Challenges of Managing

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World Parks Academy Webinar: The Future of Urban Parks: The Challenges of Managing

Urban green spaces grow increasingly in importance as cities expand with rising population densities and ever-increasing development over the next several decades. How do we set-aside and create parks while preserving necessary wild and planned green spaces within the greater pressures for urban development? What skills and resources do park professionals need to deal with the modern unique green space challenges? Tom and Scott will speak about innovative ways to provide healthy and engaging new green spaces through the discussion of several innovative places that have been built with a perspective towards modern public use. Places like the RFK Greenway in Boston, the High Line in New York City, the Parklands at Floyds Fork, and Millennium Park in Chicago will be used as examples to answer the ways we are developing and managing the challenges to provide desirable, relevant, and responsive green spaces. They will outline how design and operational management is applied to all green spaces to make them successful and durable public places that provide important ecological services.

Learning Objectives

1. Learn how different types of urban site opportunities allow for the emergence of great urban parks and have set the model for park development around the world.
2. Understand the four models that are redefining urban park development: historical parks, restoration of vacant/abandon industrial sites, opportunity in a construction development project, and building ahead of the urban development edge.
3. Gain insight on the inner workings at four significant urban parks (RFK Greenway, The High Line, The Parklands of Floyds Fork, and Millennium Park). Further, how planting plans make for beauty along with ecological services and how design has an impact on smart operational management that reduces staff workload and costs while still providing great visitor security and enjoyment.
4. Gain insights on public perspectives of these urban parks when many initially considered them failures, but now have become overwhelming successes.

Speakers

• Tom Smarr, Executive Director Jenkins Arboretum & Gardens, Devon, Pennsylvania
• Scott Stewart, Ph.D., Executive Director Millennium Park Foundation, Chicago, Illinois
• Host: Scott Martin, Executive Director River Heritage Conservancy

Dates & Times (Times are listed as local start times)

December 9th, 2020 at 10:00 AM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Webinar URL

Webcast URL If you do not wish to earn CEUs for this webcast, you do not need to register and may attend the webinar by simply clicking here.