On-Demand Sustainability in Practice Training Center

The purpose of this training center is to support park professionals at the early stages of their environmental resilience journeys to build collaborative relationships with community partners that support the development of environmental sustainability plans and practices. The resources shared offer assessment tools, sustainability-related resources and partnership and planning best practices. 

Section Breakdown:

1. System-wide changes to policies, practices and mindsets - The purpose of this lesson is to explain the concept of Systems Change and its impact on park professionals’ ability to do their work effectively. Environmentally sustainable solutions often require cross-departmental collaboration and system-wide changes to succeed, and this lesson will provide tangible examples of what this can look like. 

2. Environmental Sustainability - The purpose of this lesson is to articulate what it means for a park systems to be environmentally sustainable. Understand exactly what environmental sustainability means for your park facilities and green spaces. Learn how to identify sustainable actions already being taken and how to advocate for new environmentally beneficial changes at your parks.  

3. Community and Environmental Assessment - Assessing your existing programs, practices, resources and assets is the first step towards responsible and sustainable planning.

4. Data and Evidence-Based Decision-Making - Using data for evidence-based decision-making helps agencies stay adaptable to change and prioritize effectively. Defining clear goals and identifying success metrics data facilitates community buy-in, staff support, and assists with securing future funding. 

5. Authentic Storytelling for Fundraising and Community Engagement - Telling stories is an essential part of connecting with the community and demonstrating those genuine connections to key decision-makers for funding.  

6. Strategic Partnerships for Capacity-Building - Partnerships are foundational to successful sustainability actions at parks. Being intentional about who and how you engage partners in projects has a huge influence on your ability to execute when capacity may be limited. 

7. Community-Driven Environmental Sustainability Plans and Practices - Integrating environmental resilience into parks is most successful when a thoughtful and collaborative plan is followed. Sometimes this can look like layering sustainability into existing work plans, adding sustainable decisions into new city plans, or developing sustainability-centered pilot projects to encourage more comprehensive sustainability planning in the future.   

8.  Plan Adaptation and Resilience Best Practices 

Please contact onlinelearning@nrpa.org with any questions.

Key:

Complete
Failed
Available
Locked
System-Wide Changes to Policies, Practices and Mindsets
Systems Change Overview
Select the "Click Here to View Video" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Video" button to begin. Park professional TJ McCourt briefly explains the concept of systems change, the seven conditions that can hold systemic problems in place, and how the city of Raleigh has reframed mindsets and worked collaboratively and creatively across departments.
You must register to access.
Building Equitable and Resilient Communities
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. Explains systems-change and offers park-specific examples of implementing changes to the seven conditions that can keep systemic problems in place.
You must register to access.
Raleigh’s Park Plan Summary
Select the "Click Here to View PDF" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View PDF" button to begin. Raleigh’s Parks Plan shows a tangible example of how one park has planned for healthy park systems by identifying and addressing systemic solutions.
You must register to access.
Environmental Sustainability
Glossary of Key Sustainability Terms
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This document defines key environmental sustainability terms.
You must register to access.
Creating a Culture of Sustainability
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. This article shares insight into how to integrate sustainable practices into your agency culture.
You must register to access.
Parks as a Solution to Climate Change
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. This article offers examples of how parks play a critical role in mitigating climate change.
You must register to access.
What Sustainability Looks like in Rural/Suburban Communities
Select the "View On-Demand Recording" button to begin.
Select the "View On-Demand Recording" button to begin.
You must register to access.
Community and Environmental Assessment
Environmentally Sustainable Parks (ESP) Assessment Tool
Select the "Click Here to Access Tool" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to Access Tool" button to begin. Use the ESP Assessment Tool to assess your existing environmental sustainability practices and identify opportunities to advance your resiliency goals, agency-wide or park-specific.
You must register to access.
How-To Video for Environmentally Sustainable Parks (ESP) Assessment Tool
Select the "View On-Demand Recording" button to begin.
Select the "View On-Demand Recording" button to begin. Learn about how to use this tool from fellow park professional Chris Lindgren. Find out about how his agency has used this tool to highlight the sustainability work they’re already doing and identify new easy sustainability wins.
You must register to access.
Lynwood’s ParksLove Project
Select the "Click Here to View Website" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Website" button to begin. Lynwood’s (WA) ParksLove Project show an example of how they involved all members of their community in their park assessment, planning
You must register to access.
Data and Evidence-Based Decision-Making
Quick Action Sustainability Assessment (QASA) Tool
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. The QASA Tool is an organized collection of tools from across the internet for tracking your park’s energy outputs, air quality, community resilience, and more-- to help you quantify your outputs and advocate for resources.
You must register to access.
Recommended Measures to Evaluate Park Use and Quality
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This resource presents an overview of measures commonly used in park evaluations.
You must register to access.
Data + Design: Measuring a Landscape’s Value
Recorded 06/10/2025
Recorded 06/10/2025 This article outlines why and how to use performance data and other metrics to quantify the value of a park.
You must register to access.
Setting S.M.A.R.T. Goals
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. Outlines what SMART Goals are, and how they are essential to understand what data is most relevant for you to capture.
You must register to access.
Creating Goal-Centered Success
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This doc uses M-NCPPC’s Sustainability Action Plan as an example of a Framework for creating attainable goals, attaching metrics to said goals, and describing the exact actions that will be taken to achieve reach target metrics.
You must register to access.
Authentic Storytelling for Fundraising and Community Engagement
Storytelling
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. Provides insight into why stories are important and how to tell a compelling story that advocates for parks and recreation.
You must register to access.
We Rise up by Telling our Stories
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. This article provides tips for sharing your stories to communicate the importance of parks and recreation to communities across the country.
You must register to access.
Fostering Trust and Engagement Across Cultures
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. Shares how storytelling can build trust with community members across differences.
You must register to access.
Create your own DYK Campaign
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource.
You must register to access.
Strategic Partnerships for Capacity-Building
Engaging Diverse Groups in Building Resiliency though Stewardship
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This resource provides a process, tools and case studies that will help park and recreation professionals thoughtfully explore how to engage in community building work around natural resources and conservation efforts.
You must register to access.
Community Engagement and Outreach
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. Provides examples of strategies for implementing community engagement techniques to further environmental sustainability efforts.
You must register to access.
Spectrum of Engagement to Ownership
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This framework helps to map your level of partner involvement, to closing equity gaps and address climate vulnerability through direct participation by impacted communities in the development and implementation of solutions and policy decisions.
You must register to access.
The Importance of Community-based Organizations in Parks and Recreation
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. Highlights some ways that community-based organizations (CBOs) positively benefit communities through their involvement in parks and recreation.
You must register to access.
Impact-Effort Matrix for Mapping Partners
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource.
You must register to access.
Best Practices for Strategic Partnership
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. Outlines best practices for meaningfully and mutually engaging partners in work that furthers environmental sustainability at parks.
You must register to access.
Community-Driven Environmental Sustainability Plans and Practices
Park Prioritization Tool
Select the "Click Here to Access Tool" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to Access Tool" button to begin. This Tool helps agencies assess how park projects should be prioritized based on factors such as accessibility, deferred maintenance, cost, etc. It allows cities to make informed decisions, advocate for the funding necessary to address community needs, promote equity, and optimize the use of limited resources, ultimately leading to more effective governance and improved community outcomes.
You must register to access.
Who To Include in Sustainability Planning
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This document outlines the key stakeholders that should be involved in your park’s sustainability planning processes.
You must register to access.
Creating a Pilot Project
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This document outlines the benefits and key steps to creating a successful pilot project, and how to demonstrate success with this project that promotes the expansion of similar initiatives.
You must register to access.
Integrating Sustainability into Existing Workflows
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. This document gives examples of how to integrate sustainability language and goals into existing park plans, decision-making pathways, and maintenance workflows.
You must register to access.
Plan Adaptation and Resilience Best Practices
Triple Bottom Line
Open to download resource.
Open to download resource. The “Triple Bottom Line” explains how holistic sustainability results from a balance of social, environmental and economic factors.
You must register to access.
Parks as a Cornerstone of Sustainability
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Article" button to begin. Demonstrates how environmental sustainability is integral to social and economic sustainability for parks.
You must register to access.
Parks and Recreation is Essential
Select the "Click Here to View Webpage" button to begin.
Select the "Click Here to View Webpage" button to begin. This page shares data and key information that demonstrates how essential parks are.
You must register to access.