The Hoosier Health and Wellness Alliance (HHWA), a Connections IN Health initiative within the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, in partnership with the Indiana Division of Natural Resources (IDNR), the Indiana Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity (DNPA), and the Indiana Parks and Recreation Association (IPRA) have provided training, and technical support to assist counties across the state of Indiana in the establishment and development of county/city parks boards. The county/city park boards are critical to equipping communities to be eligible for funding and resources for park development. This will ultimately positively impact economic, social, and mental health wellbeing within communities as a result of increased parks and recreation accessibility.
As Indiana counties continue to see the benefits of addressing how recreational acreage is utilized in their communities, counties like Blackford are quickly approaching the finish line on establishing park boards and master plans of their own. Blackford County has successfully completed the Enhancing the Value of Public Spaces process, developed a parks board ordinance, started identifying parks board members, and are in initial development of a draft 5-year master plan for approval by the IDNR. You can learn more about the Enhancing the Value of Public Spaces in this Creating Healthy Communities Engagement Report.
In providing professional development training on how to meet leaders where they are, identifying the gatekeepers needed to move projects forward, and how to clarify and articulate “the ask”. The HHWA seeks to support the learning of how to successfully leverage leader buy-in for projects, and get collaborative outcomes for community partners. The HHWA also seeks to connect county level parks board activities to expert leaders who can provide technical assistance on Indiana parks board development, and recreational programming.
The HHWA plans to provide a webinar series dedicated to ADA Compliance for local parks boards. The first of the series, Best Practices in Accessibility Management for Parks and Recreation, will be on November 8, 2022, from 2:00-3:30pm EST. This is being hosted to support parks board and recreational departments across Indiana as they work toward making local programs, services, facilities, and parks more inclusive of people with disabilities. You may register at this link. Trails, Shared Use Paths, and Public Rights of Way will be discussed at the second webinar of the series on January 31, 2023, from 2:00-3:30pm EST. You may register for this webinar at this link.
The HHWA is part of the Connections IN Health project, which is comprised of a team of experts focused on some of Indiana’s most chronic conditions, including obesity, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Please reach out to Antonia Sawyer at afsawyer@iu.edu, Lead of the Hoosier Health and Wellness Alliance, for more information.
