The video is lengthy, but if you have time it's worth watching. Watch it here (click on the photo on OPB's page to start the video).
How Trees Are Made
Communities at Play
Our American culture today does not incorporate play into everyday life. Possibly this is a cultural thing, but more likely it is a partial result of the way we build and live in our communities. Throughout history society has usually integrated some sort of play into the culture. As a matter of fact, cultures that integrate more play into everyday life tend to live longer and healthier lives. This is especially true of people who have frequent intergenerational contact and, more importantly, when that contact incorporates some form of release activity—like play.
Much in the same way that we have segregated the aspects of our lives through community zoning, we have segregated our generations, our friendship groups, and the activities that can bring us together. One of the most important of these may be play. Our planned and zoned physical isolation creates difficulty in finding places and partners for play. Not only does this affect us physically, but it affects us emotionally and socially. No other activity in our lives, with the possible exception of spiritualism, brings so much to our well being. Play is usually low or no cost and is best when spontaneous.
Nationally, there is a trend towards finding ways to overcome the isolation created by our automotive-oriented, zoned communities. People are now asking for lifestyles that allow for closer communities with more potential for contact among generations and friends or potential friends. One thing that we have learned through urban and recreational design is to create spaces where a greater number of activities are possible and encouraged. This is the first step in allowing people to do what brings them the greatest happiness: being with other people. Contemporary studies show that the greatest satisfaction in life is found through contact with others.
One of the best ways that humans historically have found to gather is through play. Since play is at best spontaneous, and often has no real purpose, it can blend the broadest range of people. Any type of place will function as a play area, as long as something about the space creates a comfortable atmosphere. It is also very easy and inexpensive to create a playful environment simply through thoughtful design.
America is rethinking its cities and neighborhoods in order to create a more cohesive, healthy and connected citizenry. Many planners are rethinking recreation areas. Now many of our parks, open spaces, drainages, land buffers, sports complexes and playgrounds can and are taking on a new look. They too are no longer always isolated into separate categories. These recreational lands are being designed and built to create all of these uses in proximity to each other and close to where we live and work. They are the community rather than an afterthought or addition. The new millennium should find all of us with greater opportunity to see each other, to interact with each other, and to relieve the stress of our lives through play and interaction.
-Axel Bishop
For further reading see:
“A History of Children’s Play and Play Environments” by Joe L. Frost.
Return of the Buffalo Commons
Thanks to the NRPA Weekly newsletter that shows up in my inbox, I ran across an interesting article about an old idea that I had long forgotten. Many years ago I went to a lecture at CU presented by the proponents of a concept they called the Buffalo Commons. While intrigueing at the time, it nontheless seemed pretty far-fetched. The idea was to remove people from much of the Great Plains and return it to a natural condition where the buffalo could freely roam. Interesting now to hear the idea being resurected by none other than the governor of Kansas. An article at http://www.kansascity.com/340/story/1570333.html talks about the possibility of turning a large part of northwestern Kansas into a "Buffalo Commons National Park".
The article also mentions a bill introduced in Congress last week to restore full funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund. In my travels to inventory and evaluate parks across the country, I frequently run across parks that were created years ago with Land and Water Conservation Funds. These parks are providing an important service today to people in a wide variety of communities. Restoration of this program to full funding would benefit many communities, particularly smaller ones that don't have a lot of other resources for creating parks.
Rob Layton
The article also mentions a bill introduced in Congress last week to restore full funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund. In my travels to inventory and evaluate parks across the country, I frequently run across parks that were created years ago with Land and Water Conservation Funds. These parks are providing an important service today to people in a wide variety of communities. Restoration of this program to full funding would benefit many communities, particularly smaller ones that don't have a lot of other resources for creating parks.
Rob Layton
Whimsy and Adaptability in Spokane Valley's New Park
National Recreation and Park Association Annual Congress
Dispatch from Salt Lake City…
Once again it is time for the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) congress – this year in Salt Lake City. What a great time to be in Utah! It is beautiful here – if a bit windy. This year the Congress is looking a little smaller than usual, presumably due to budgets being slashed across the country. Still there is a great energy here. It is a great time to reconnect with old friends and past clients and see what is new in the world of parks and recreation (see photo).
This year’s keynote speaker, Jim Carroll, encouraged us to pay attention to the future – even embrace it with all of its changes. He emphasized that things are only going to happen faster and we need to be able to respond to keep up and move ahead. It is a good reminder during a time where we are working hard just to put out the fires around us. It is hard to look ahead, but we must do it. He challenged us to think about how parks and recreation can be more responsive, flexible, and on the cutting edge. I guess the response “because we’ve always done it that way” no longer applies.
What does this mean in terms of park design? Providing facilities that keep up with recreation trends? Wiring parks for internet access? Providing spaces for on-line social networking? Installing electronic play equipment? Creating “find a park” and “find a playground” apps for GPS enabled phones? Creating on-line virtual arboretums and amenities inventories for parks? -OR- How about going the opposite direction, creating spaces where electronics are disabled to encourage face-to-face interaction?
When I turn this question on my current work as a parks professional, I wonder – “What are we doing in our current work to address the future of parks and recreation?” In a presentation given by Karon Badalamenti of GreenPlay and I, we talked about the future of parks and recreation planning. In our latest projects we have been trying to figure out how to measure Level of Service that includes all things provided by parks and recreation agencies – not just counting things and drawing a circle around them. Ultimately we would like to be able to measure level of service based on quality of experience. That would include all parts of the experience from first thought to memories after. That level of information may really change the way that we look at what we are providing to the public. But we must act fast! The future is quickly approaching!
–Rachel Brenna
