December 2011 - Parks & Recreation - 13

America's
Backyard is a
collective eﬀort
to highlight the
importance
of parks

What the heck is America's Backyard? That's
the question members asked me at this year's Congress. Let me
explain. Prior to my joining NRPA, the Board retained a public
relations fi rm to fi nd out what it would take to raise the public's
awareness about the importance of parks and recreation. The
board felt, and rightly so, that if the public understood the importance of parks then they would support agencies in seeking
much needed funds in their local communities. In other words,
an " infantry " of park lovers would help the field procure their
budget requests.
Unfortunately, the results of the
public relations study concluded that
such a campaign would cost the association in excess of one million dollars
and this was considered a very conservative estimate! Needless to say,
NRPA didn't have the funds then and
nor does it now. The need, however,
was still there, as evidenced by members' requests.
Faced with this need, the Board
approved a " self-sustaining " public awareness campaign and titled it
" America's Backyard. " NRPA launched
America's Backyard in 2010. The goal
of this campaign was twofold. The first
and most immediate goal was to create
public awareness of the critical role of
parks. Money collected from the public
would roll back into the public awareness campaign to allow NRPA to continue its outreach. The secondary, and
more long-term, goal was to create
revenue to fund: (1) programs that that
would resonate with the public (Parks
Build Community), (2) research (National Economic Benefit Study), and (3)
advocacy.
America's Backyard's message
is simple-public parks belong to
the people, and access to parks and
the protection of parks are basic
American values. We tested several messages with the public. We sent
solicitations that talked about the economic benefits, the alleviation of social issues, and conservation. We

discovered that while park and recreation's programmatic work helped
make the case, the overwhelming
public response from our tests indicated that the biggest motivator for
the public was the conservation of
open space, preservation of cultural
and natural resources, and protection
of wildlife.
This is a new initiative for NRPA
and there will be bumps in the road,
but you can help by giving us your
feedback, sharing your " park friends "
emails, or pushing out our information
to your park groups. Some in the field
have voiced concern about sharing
their lists/friends. We understand and
want to assure you that our intent is not
to take away from your efforts but to
support them. In fact, we are exploring models that would result in sharing revenue with those who help us.
 Ultimately, America's Backyard's
accomplishments will help the field
but we can't do it without you. I encourage you to call me with your
questions or suggestions regarding
America's Backyard. We don't have
all the answers, but together we can
do this. I would also encourage you
to donate and/or learn more by visiting America's Backyard's website:
www.AmericasBackyard.org. You can
" like " us on the America's Backyard
Facebook page (www.facebook.com/
ourbackyard) and connect with others
who share your passion for parks.

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December 2011 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2011 - Parks & Recreation
