Austin ParksCast

In Austin, the city and community partners are collaborating to ensure that all of Austin’s children, regardless of race or income, have abundant access to nature’s proven benefits. During this session, you’ll learn how Austin’s Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN) collaborative’s data-driven approach brings together city departments, Austin ISD, and multiple non-profit and community-based partners to improve children’s health and close the nature gaps for the kids who need it most.

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In our final episode of Season 1, we’re talking about something near and dear to everyone at Austin Parks Foundation: volunteerism. Volunteer projects are critical to the health of our city’s park system. Coordinated efforts between park stewards and city staff can lead to incredible, positive outcomes in our city’s outdoor spaces.

We’re thrilled to have Barry Rivera, our Volunteer Manager at APF, facilitate this discussion. We’d like to thank our guests for joining us today including:

Jerry Levenson and David Todd - veteran park stewards, Patrick Chaiken from the City of Austin Park Ranger Program as well as James Duff from the City of Austin Wildlife Division.

Volunteer events are a core part of what we do at Austin Parks Foundation. In the midst of COVID-19, in-person volunteer events have been on pause as parks, trails and green spaces were seeing unprecedented use. A phrase we like to use is “over-loved.” As restrictions ease we hope to get you back out into the parks soon, so stay tuned on our website at austinparks.org/volunteer.

We’re excited for you to hear from our guests on the importance of volunteering. Check out the video version of this Park Summit Session at austinparks.org/summit!

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

We’ll be hearing from members of the Youth Leadership Working Group and their work to empower young leaders in outdoor spaces. Let me tell you a little bit about what they do:

The Youth Leadership Working Group is a collaborative effort by the city and community partner organizations to give young leaders an opportunity to learn and elevate their leadership skills and voices in a supportive community dedicated to equity and access.

In this facilitated discussion, young leaders will touch on personal connections to nature, barriers to young BIPOC (an acronym that means Black, Indigenous, People of Color) in the pursuit of environmental and nature-based careers, actions underway now, and actions that SHOULD be taken to uplift underserved communities. Check out the livestream video at austinparks.org/summit!

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In this Park Summit session, Isabella Teran, Development Coordinator at Austin Parks Foundation, talked with Asvini Thivakaran about her mission to save the environment and how kids can help in big and small ways.

Asvini is an award-winning environmental activist and 6th-grade student. Check out her website and YouTube channel. She’s been volunteering in the parks since she was in 2nd grade! We’re so impressed with all she’s accomplished and excited to see what big things she’ll do next.

We also had the opportunity to talk about how kids can engage with and protect our parks through APF’s kids club, Little Hummingbird Society! Learn more about member benefits at austinparks.org/lhs.

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In today’s episode, we’ll learn how the city and community partners are working to understand, uncover and address racial equity in Austin. Specifically, we’ll focus on our city’s parks, trails and green spaces. We invited a group of panelists to tackle tough but essential conversations about equity in Austin’s outdoor spaces.

We’ll hear about the goals and challenges of racial equity work, current initiatives, and why it’s so important for residents to be aware and engaged in this effort.

My co-host Kathleen will introduce the session then hand the reins to our guest host, Rocio Villalobos of the City of Austin Equity Office.

A huge thank you to our guests LaJuan Tucker from the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, Starla Simmons from the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at the University of Texas and Kellee Coleman from the City of Austin Equity Office. 

If you'd like to watch the livestream video of this Park Summit Session, head to austinparks.org/summit!

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

Today’s conversation focuses on how our city’s budget impacts public assets like our parks, trails and green spaces. What can we do to make sure the City of Austin budget reflects our values?

Budgets are often described as “moral documents.” Investments in education, healthcare, parks and recreation and other social services can directly address social issues that our community is experiencing.

The good news is that you can help! If we want our city’s budgets to reflect what’s important to us, we must raise our voices. We can also amplify the voices of those who are historically underserved and underrepresented.

We’re honored to have Andrew Hairston from Texas Appleseed as well as Tiffany Cabin and Lucas Massey from the Austin Parks and Recreation Department.

Learn more about Texas Appleseed and the work they do to promote social and economic justice for all Texans at texasappleseed.org.

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In this episode, we’re taking you back to our Park Summit Session from June 17, 2020. This session is titled: Essential Spaces: Making Parks A Priority and focuses on the importance of parks and civic engagement in the time of COVID-19.

Our guests include Austin City Council Member Paige Ellis, Christine Chute Canul from the Austin Parks & Recreation Department as well as Austin Parks Foundation Staff.

My co-host Kathleen will introduce the Parks Summit Series and our guest speakers will tell you about themselves and their work. As a reminder, this session was originally in video format, you can view the presentations in the original livestream video at ausitnparks.org/summit!

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In our second episode of Season 1, we’re Talking Trails. Specifically, you’ll hear about the planning, funding and management of Austin’s trail system as well as the physical and mental health benefits our urban trails provide.

It’s no secret that Austinites love our city’s trails and greenbelts, but have you ever wondered how they came to be? Who takes care of them? This session has answers for you!

This livestream session was our first of 2020, originally airing on April 23rd, but the history and structure of our trail system, and your voice in advocating for it, is more relevant now than ever.

We partnered with Shoal Creek Conservancy, Hill Country Conservancy and invited guests from the City of Austin’s Transportation and Public Works Departments. Check out the original livestream video at austinparks.org/summit!

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

In our first episode of Season 1, we’re taking you back in time to May 2020. This session originated as a livestream video titled 6 Feet A Park: COVID Safety in Parks. See what we did there?

This discussion is focused on keeping parks open on both a city and state level, with an emphasis on doing our part to keep each other safe in the midst of COVID-19. Though this session is from May of 2020, MUCH of it is still relevant today as we continue to deal with COVID-19. We hope some of these tips will help you stay safe out in the parks!

Our guests include Rodney Franklin - Director of Texas Parks & Wildlife, Kimberly McNeely - Director of the Austin Parks & Recreation Department, and Austin Parks Foundation’s CEO Colin Wallis.

Music & transitions provided by Honey Son. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.

Do you love Austin's parks and trails? You're in the right place! In our intro episode, hosts Grant and Kathleen talk about what to expect from the Austin ParksCast episodes as well as details on Seasons 1 & 2. Click here for a full transcript of the episode.

Music provided by Honey Son, the stage moniker of multi-instrumentalist crooner Mars Wright. Check out his music on Spotify and YouTube!

The Austin ParksCast is a production of Austin Parks Foundation. Find out more information about our Parks Summit series, and the work we do to improve parks for every Austinite at austinparks.org.