Be a National Trails Symposium sponsor and exhibitor Little Rock 2008

Download the Symposium Program! Download PDF 12.5 mb file

MINI-WORKSHOPS

These workshops will be repeated twice over the course of the afternoon on Sunday, November 16.

Trail Topic Mini-Workshops invite you to be an active part of in-depth discussions

Want to get “up close and personal” with hot trail topics? The Trail Topic Mini-Workshops provide the occasion for you to be an active part of in-depth discussions and activities on eight different trail topics. These workshops will be repeated twice over the course of the afternoon on Sunday, November 16, allowing more time to explore these subjects in a hands-on, participatory forum.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16
Time: 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.

Trail Topic Mini-Workshops - Want to get “up close and personal” with a hot trail topic? The Trail Topic Mini-Workshops provide the occasion for you to be an active part of in-depth discussion and activities on ten different trail topics. These workshops will be repeated twice over the course of the afternoon.

JOURNEY DOWN A RIVER: LEARN TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR BLUE TRAIL
Download PowerPoint presentation: Environmental Education: Inside the Outdoors (pdf 5.9 mb)
Izard Room (Statehouse Convention Center)

Join us as we take a paddle, a virtual paddle that is. We will explore a hometown river and make stops along the way to identify important water trail opportunities – opportunities for conservation, opportunities to connect with land trails, and opportunities to promote local resources and amenities. This session will explore opportunities and examine examples of how communities across the country can benefit from taking advantage of these opportunities.

Workshop Leaders: Jamie Mierau, Director of River Protection, American Rivers; Paul Sanford, Director of Stewardship and Public Policy, American Canoe Association

PARTNERSHIPS FOR TRAIL SUCCESS
Download PowerPoint presentation: Partnering to Manage Roads and Trails in the Chippewa Area (pdf 5.9 mb)
Miller Room (Statehouse Convention Center)

Grab your partner and do-si-do! We’re calling everyone to The Partnerships for Trail Success Dance. Think of your trail project as a dance... The Trail Dance is a lot more fun when you have a partner…and probably more successful. Join in, and we’ll show you some new steps. There will be many partners, and they must work in-step to maintain a steady rhythm. Stepping on toes is not recommended! Sometimes partners can switch, as some projects are more compatible with different partners. We will show you some unique partnership presentations that will have your toes tapping to the music of trail success and encourage you to lead a dance or two, sharing your partnership successes.

Workshop Leaders: Helen Koehler, President, FL Greenways and Trails Foundation; Jack Olson, Trail Planner, Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources; Brian Kauffman, Facilities Director, Suwannee River Water Management District, FL

NEW APPROACHES, TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT FOR TRAIL MAINTENANCE – A "SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE" SESSION
Conway Room (Peabody Hotel)

Learn how to work smarter NOT harder. This mini-workshop will provide you the opportunity to ask the professional trail builders and each other those nagging questions related to trail construction and maintenance. The round table format of this session will allow you to learn and share the best considerations and technology for trail maintenance, before and after the trail is built.

Workshop Leaders: John Collins, Associate Professor, University of North Texas, American Trails Board; Woody Keen, President of Trail Dynamics LLC

BUY, SELL, BEG, OR BORROW: CREATIVE FUNDING IDEAS FROM AMERICA’S TRAILS
White Oak Room (Peabody Hotel)

The future of trails depends on evolving new sources of support. Eric Van Steenburg will share strategic fundraising ideas from his experience with Friends of the Katy Trail. A roundtable discussion will give attendees an opportunity to share experiences as well as think creatively with other trail advocates on better ways to generate funding. We'll discuss the most creative ways that attendees have generated income for trail projects and identify ideas with the most potential for funding trails.

Workshop Leaders: Stuart Macdonald, American Trails Website Editor, Program Manager, National Trails Training Partnership; Speaker: Eric Van Steenburg, Executive Director, Friends of the Katy Trail

FROM THE DOORSTEP: MAKING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN DEVELOPERS AND TRAILS
Harris Brake Room (Peabody Hotel)

Where do Americans want to live? When buying a home, what amenities attract them to their neighborhood of choice? Would you be surprised to know that the answer is trails? According to the National Association of Homebuilders, trails are the number one community amenity that homebuyers seek when purchasing a home. Americans are in pursuit of communities where trails can be quickly reached from their doorstep. This evolving trend points to the critical importance of developers as partners in the establishment of trails and trail networks. Attend this mini-workshop to see successful examples of developers who are incorporating trails in their communities. You will also have a chance to join the conversation of how the trails community can better partner with developers.

Workshop Leaders: Jim Wood, Assistant Director, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Greenways & Trails; Randy Martin, President, Trailscape, Inc.; Patti Pakkala, Planner, Prince William County Park Authority; Jim Baish, President of the Land Planning & Design Group

UNDERSTANDING SUSTAINABILITY AND BUILDING BETTER TRAILS
Download PowerPoint presentation: (pdf 6.4 mb)
Caraway Room II & III, (Statehouse Convention Center)

Creating a truly sustainable trail is dependent on integrating the environmental, social, and economic aspects of a trail’s design, construction, maintenance, and programming. Environmentally sustainability focuses on optimizing the minimization of construction and long-term resource impacts with the purpose of the trail. Economic sustainability relates to much more than maintenance inputs, as trails can be economic drivers, facilitate healthier lifestyles and lower health care costs, and become marketing agents for communities. Social sustainability is more far-reaching than who is allowed to access a trail, driven more by proactive education and programming around trails than in regulations. This workshop will investigate a trail system that is currently being retrofit to a more holistically sustainable condition and will explore the tools that are available to managers in developing sustainable trail systems.

Workshop Leaders: Kelly and Collins Bishop, Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew; Mike Passo, Owner and Operator of Elakah Expeditions LLC, American Trails Board member

ACCESSIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR TRAILS
Fulton Room (Statehouse Convention Center)

The U.S. Access Board proposed accessibility guidelines for trails and other outdoor constructed elements for Federal facilities covered by the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) in June 2007. The public comment period has closed and the Board is preparing to issue a final rule in the near future. The session will provide an overview of the proposed accessibility guidelines for Outdoor Developed Areas, including trails and a summary of the public comment received. Come and hear about the areas of trail accessibility where there is consensus as well as the national trail surface research project being conducted by the National Center on Accessibility and the U.S. Access Board.

Workshop Leader: Bill Botten, Accessibility Specialist, U.S. Access Board

RESEARCH NEEDS, SCIENCE, AND TRAILS
See notes on “Science, Research, and Trails”
Grampas Room (Peabody Hotel)

Come share survey results, recent studies, or current research along your trail. Better yet, help us frame new questions for future studies. What are your top research needs? How can we get the research needed to assure the public of the best trail experiences?

Workshop Leader: Steve Elkinton, NPS National Trails System Program Leader.

MIND YOUR P’S: SHAPE UP YOUR TRAIL PROJECT WITH HEALTH PARTNERSHIPS, POLICY, PROMOTION AND PROGRAMS
Chicot Room (Peabody Hotel)

Innovative projects are going beyond the basics to incorporate health-related partners, messaging, activities and policy initiatives into trail development. Presenters will showcase projects in New England that incorporate a multi-faceted approach to planning and promoting trails with health partners for physical activity, transportation, economic development, and much more. Learn how health funders such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Connecticut Department of Health helped make these projects possible. This workshop will include an opportunity for physical activity along one of the premier health and trail projects in the country.

Workshop Leaders: Helen Mahan, Community Planner, National Park Service’s Rivers and Trails Program; Marcia Atkinson, Cardiologist, Heart Clinic Arkansas; Leslie Lewis, WalkCT Coordinator, CT Forest and Park Association

GETTING CHILDREN OUTDOORS - IT CAN BE HABITAT FORMING
Download PowerPoint presentation: Environmental Education: Inside the Outdoors (pdf 5.9 mb)
Pope Room (Statehouse Convention Center)

This min-workshop is centered on the premise of Richard Louv’s “Last Child in the Woods” and the recent advent of a back to nature movement to reconnect children with the outdoors that now has parents, teachers, pediatricians, and politicians, all touting the benefits to children spending time outdoors. Join us in this first ever “Walk the Talk” mini-workshop format that builds in active listening and deep dialogue both indoors and out. Presentations and discussions will include using trails as part of an outdoor education program for students, and creative policies and programs to engage families and children in the great outdoors.

Workshop Leaders: Roger Bell, President Bellfree Contractors, Inc., Redlands, California.; Pam Johnson, Orange County Department of Education, Costa Mesa, California; Diana Allen, National Park Service – Rivers and Trails Program, St. Louis, Missouri

American Trails, P.O. Box 491797, Redding, CA 96049-1797 • (530) 547-2060
• Fax: (530) 547-2035 • Symposium@americantrails.org • www.AmericanTrails.org

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