The Staircase To Stewardship Concept is a great way to think about visitor engagement. Ky Harkey joins Donald Forgione on the Tailgate to discuss this engaging concept.

Ky Harkey founded The Visitor Experience to spread joy and protect public lands through wildly successful visitor experiences. Ky honed his approach to Visitor Experience Design during a 10-year career serving Texas State Parks. As Interpretation Director, he led 35 program staff and 65 field Interpreters to develop projects and products which engage new audiences and improve 10 million annual visits. Ky facilitated the National Collaboration of State Park Interpretation Directors from 2017-2022. He's also spent time as a NOLS Backpacking Instructor, Wilderness EMT, and active leader in the Children in Nature Network. When he's not helping parks, he's playing in them. Ky has visited all 88 Texas State Parks, 26 National Parks, and he founded the longest backpacking route in Texas.

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