The Role of Parks and Recreation in Planning for Health
Thursday, September 18
2:00 pm
Park and recreation departments have many roles to play in promoting public health, active living, and community development. Increasingly, planners, park departments, and public health professionals are working together to improve park and recreation facilities through smart planning and creative funding streams. In this webinar, representatives from urban park systems in Los Angeles and Miami will discuss innovations they are making in planning parks for health, and how their approach can lead to successes in your community. The session will offer advanced training for professionals from planning, health, and parks and recreation. Register now!

Creating a Fit Nation: Tips and Tools from the Authors of New York's Active Design Guidelines
Tuesday, September 23
4:00 pm
New York City's award-winning Active Design Guidelines, a product of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-sponsored program, Fit Nation, offer examples and illustrations of design strategies that promote active living. Utilizing these guidelines for architecture, urban design, and planning can lead to increased use of active transportation, improved social cohesion, and a healthier population. The authors of the Active Design Guidelines will discuss its creation, share examples of implementation, and offer suggestions for how you can begin to implement actions to promote health in your building, block, or neighborhood. Register now!

GOPA Webinar

Monday, September 29

Get Outdoors PA (GOPA) is hosting a free webinar for those who are interested in adding winter programming to their schedule. The webinar is geared towards those organizations that would like help in developing and enhancing their winter activities. Webinar participants will hear from members of the GOPA Team, as well as seasoned professionals who will share their own experiences and lessons learned.

The webinar will cover all aspects of adding a winter program, including how winter events can enhance your programming, best practices for developing/modifying activities for the cold season, strategies for engaging key partners, and everything else you need to know to make your program successful.

Get ready for Winter by registering for this valuable, fun training opportunity!

New Guidelines to Bring Nature Play to Every Community

Every parent who has ever watched a child play in nature has cause to rejoice. This week the National Wildlife Federation and the Natural Learning Initiative released Nature Play & Learning Places: Creating and Managing Places Where Children Engage with Nature. The guidelines define nature play places; explain how to plan, design, and manage them; and how to bring them to children and families in every community.

Nature Play & Learning Places is a project of the National Wildlife Federation and the Natural Learning Initiative at North Carolina State University's College of Design. The guidelines draw from principal author Robin Moore's extensive landscape design experience, case studies of 12 existing nature play areas across the country, and the contributions from the members of a national steering committee and a technical advisory committee, which consisted of representatives from more than 20 national organizations, including the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. "Providing close-to-home nature play and learning places supports implementation of the 2014-2018, PA State Comprehensive Recreation Plan. These guidelines are a useful tool for provision of opportunities to reconnect people to the outdoors," said Lauren Imgrund, director of the Bureau of Recreation and Conservation, DCNR.

For technical assistance to develop a project in your local community, visit the PA DCNR, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation website and contact your DCNR Regional Advisor.

To download and read the full text of the guidelines, click here.

On Tuesday evening, NRPA launched nine projects on Fund Your Park -- a crowdfunding site dedicated to park and recreation projects. The nine projects will be fundraising for 45 days and represent agencies across the country. Check out their projects and share your favorites with your network or donate to their cause! NRPA will be accepting applications for the second round of fundraising projects at the end of September, so stay tuned. Learn more.

To view the PRPS Calendar, click here.

Online Registration is available for the Swimming Pool Workshops, CPSI Course and Exam, and Resource Operations Workshop.

September 23 - Plymouth Meeting

PA Department of Agriculture Pesticide Applicator Exams

September 24 - Plymouth Meeting

Swimming Pool Re-Certification Workshop

September 25 - Plymouth Meeting

October 15 - Cabela's, Hamburg

Fall Membership Meeting

November 19 - TBD

DCNR/PRPS Community Grant Workshops

November 5 - Prosser Hall, Camp Hill

November 6 - Montgomery County Fire Academy, Conshohocken

November 18 - Pine Township Recreation Center, Wexford

November 19 - Quality Inn, Franklin

November 20 - Luzerne County Community College, Nanticoke

November 21 - Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center, State College 

Click here for more detailed information.

Certified Playground Safety Inspector Course and Exam

December 2-4 - Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey, Harrisburg

For a list of other training and upcoming events outside PRPS, click here.