Park Leaders Show : Park Ranger | National Park | State Park | Leadership

Dan Bortner, Director of Indiana State Parks, discusses the “business” side of parks and the importance of fostering a healthy paradigm within your team. In the parks business, you must understand that your business is memory-making. Your product is a consistent experience across some of the most unique locations your state has to offer. Whether empowering the leaders under you or working with them to create a brand, building trust goes a long in setting the destination. Dan also discussed the value of surrounding yourself with integrity - honest people who may or may not be better than you. As leaders, it’s essential we not only empower our team to solve problems and make decisions but provide the method, the manpower and the materials needed to get the job done. In all things, it’s important to understand you are here for a brief amount of time and your goal must be to do the best you can while you are here.

Grady Spann, Director of Arkansas State Parks, discusses the importance of trust in all aspects of park management and leadership.   After growing up in Brazil, receiving his degree, and serving in the army, Grady started his state park tenure as a Superintendent of an archeological park in Arkansas. Serving as the superintendent of multiple parks, the lessons he’s learned have served him well in his current role as Director of Arkansas State Parks. The importance of trust has proven a recurring theme, whether facilitating stadium events or hosting the State Parks Directors conference.   Regardless of the position, stewarding the trust of your customer, be it a camper, sports fan or visiting State Park Director, is paramount with serving in a parks program. Park leadership is not just about making changes – it’s about being a public servant. Embracing the Ranger First initiative recognizes that rangers deal with many things: hospitality, customer experience, and critical incidents. In each case, they have a d

Ryan Jenkins, Park Manager at Henry Horton State Park, discusses his upbringing, his love for nature, and current projects. Raised in a National Forest Service family, Ryan pursued music and business in college before rediscovering his love for parks in his late 20’s. Since then, he has been active in promoting health initiatives involving park activities. One activity in particular, Healthy Parks Healthy Person, has been largely successful. Launched in 2015, the Healthy Parks Healthy Person is a stamp card program allowing app users to earn rewards based on their park activity. These points can then be redeemed as discounts and other benefits from participating businesses. The big-picture goal, as Ryan explains, “We just want to get people outside for their health. We want to create behavior change with this application. In order to do that, we utilize the gamification and technology…to try to get people into our parks.”

Sean Woods, Superintendent of California State Parks, discusses his background and current position on this episode. Having taken a non-traditional path to his current role, Sean has spent almost 15 years bringing the State Park Mission to underprivileged, urban communities in Los Angeles. Through this initiative, he has supervised planning and development efforts at Rio de Los Angeles State Parks, Los Angeles State Historic Park, and the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. In addition to these endeavors, Sean has pioneered planning efforts with Los Angeles River Parks to revitalize the use of local wetlands. In all projects, Sean’s ultimate goal is to work with people as well as for them in establishing a culture of inclusion.

While visitors come to parks to use facilities, fans come to connect with the people behind them. As Jody explains, not only do fans attend parks more frequently, but see the park experience as an extension of community. Often times, people will limit their appearances based on a specific event, but for the devoted fan, parks represent an opportunity to network both online and offline. As such, fans are more likely to offer meaningful contributions financially, socially, even environmentally as opposed to visitors.

Adam Turner, Area Manager for the Anti-Poaching Unit in Sweden, discusses efforts in wildlife protection and local law enforcement partnership. Among his responsibilities, Turner highlights the rise of wolf poaching, propaganda, and his work to quench both. Although cities have been relatively unscathed, the fear of wolf attacks and poaching harassment has increased in rural communities. As Turner points out, while one could assume field surveys as the solution, the best way to deter poaching crimes is to team with governing authorities on increasing public awareness.

Jon Jarvis, Executive Director of the Institute for Parks, People and Biodiversity at the University of California Berkeley, returns to discuss park projects in China. After leading a summer team to evaluate China’s national park system, Jarvis notes several positive developments. From President Xi’s “beautiful China” emphasis to local conservation efforts, the mission is clear: Do in ten years what America did in a hundred.  With high drive to establish a new park system, Jarvis believes China will implement a well-rounded national park program with adequate funding and government support. The question is can they deliver on their own time table goal?

In this episode, Jody Maberry discusses the next wave of park rangers. While past and present rangers contrast in several areas, future rangers may not be as different as we think. The next generation of park leaders will be more inclined to know the purpose of what they do; however, they are similar to current leaders in wanting their voice to be heard. Jody expects future rangers to improve outreach efforts and charges current rangers to encourage interest and the difference between role and purpose in their work.

In this episode, we’re talking about the 3 P’s that define park leadership and service: people, places, and the past. The first ‘P’, people, captures the fundamental core of why park rangers exist. Without people, the purpose of park leadership cannot exist. The second ‘P’, places, represents communities from a physical and relational perspective. While most parks have fixed boundaries, since people and place can’t be separated, rangers can better serve viewing location through a social lens. The final ‘P’, the past, conveys personal significance as to why people return to parks. For many, the past is the reason to return to parks; however, for rangers, the past can also be a powerful management and motivational tool. As Gaines explains, not only is the past an emblem of legacy, but a foundation where others can do what they’re passionate about.

Phil Gaines returns to discuss what it means to be "ranger first". During the past 25 years, the role of a park ranger has changed dramatically. While much of this has centered on energy conservation and public education, one of the most significant swings in function has involved law enforcement. According to Gaines, the expectations of park rangers have evolved in part by increased connection to enforcement officials. Unfortunately, this has resulted in overstepped boundaries in certain situations. As Gaines goes on to explain, whether partnering with law enforcement or cleaning a bathroom, thinking 'ranger first' can simplify tough situations by keeping public service at the core of the action.

Phil Gaines returns to recap the 2019 National Association of State Park Directors Conference. Having attended with Jody, Phil takes inventory of several topics ranging from networking and frontline employees to law enforcement and debate etiquette. As he goes on to explain, there are many ways to absorb insight in large scale gatherings; however, by pursuing relationships and knowledge together, one can better link current trends to future progress.

Phil Gaines returns to discuss the challenge of national parks staying relevant. While there are many ways for parks to remain meaningful, according to Gaines, embracing technology to make connections with the next generation is paramount. If parks want to stay relevant, they must convince young people to not only care about their resources, but invest leisure time. To do this, parks must employ quality customer service and technological innovation to create memorable recreation moments. Even if new technology proves disruptive, if parks can customize its involvement through their services, the stage will be set for visitors to see the return value.

In this episode of the Park Leaders Show, Phil Gaines returns to discuss some of the environmental challenges national parks are facing. While climate change is a significant factor, for most park rangers and directors, the greatest impacts occur at the local level. For instance, there’s not much a park ranger can do to affect the weather apart from conservation efforts; however, a park ranger can take measures to monitor beach replenishment, safety of endangered species, and visitor use patterns. According to Gaines, while local level matters can be complex, by leading through the small things, park officials can better expand their influence. After all, leadership isn’t so much about the big things; it’s about recognizing the little things over time that become the big things.

Phil Gaines returns to break down the role of a leader. While the challenges of leadership are many, arguably none are more taxing than motivation. From offering direction to removing obstacles, when leading by example, a leader must often be the example before he can model it; however, this pursuit can’t drive results by itself. If a leader wants to tie guidance to goals, then he must value and facilitate team community. As Gaines explains, the key to team community, as well as leadership at large, is servanthood. To be a quality leader, one must not only apply humility into upward mobility, but also prioritize team effort over individual performance. By targeting these strengths, a leader can be empowered to make difficult decisions and persevere under pressure.

Phil Gaines returns to the show to talk about the role of influence in leadership.   As leaders, it's important to be mindful of voice and presence. In a day and age when what you say is magnified through technology and social media, knowing the impacts of reputation is key. For instance, if people naturally flock to you for vision and direction, chances are you're building a healthy reputation among those you serve. Contrarily, if what you say lacks consistency and/or morale, your voice will suffer and hinder your influence.

In this edition of the Park Leaders Show, Topher Downham. Outreach Coordinator at City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, discusses his background and work with parks. After a college swimming pool accident left him paralyzed, Downham notes how navigating trails in a wheelchair inspired him to pursue a career in parks. Forced to learn trails as a quadriplegic, Downham now uses his outdoor expertise to lead hand cycle ride nature hikes for people with disabilities. With decades of experience consulting parks to better their disability accessibility, Downham recently channeled his knowledge into a trail guidebook, The Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks Accessible Trails and Sites. The guide, specifically aimed for the disabled, takes the reader on a tour through 30 trails in Boulder with pointers for handling hard spots and accommodations. The handbook also includes special features ranging from how to find the best shady spots to helping those with memory loss re-engage with nature.

Phil Gaines returns to discuss how leaders can stay connected to their frontline customers and employees. When it comes to a successful enterprise, no question, this can’t happen without frontline employees. By dealing directly with customers, frontline workers not only have high drive and insight but represent a company’s values through their service. However, before a leader can develop a frontline staff, he must first be willing to model these values to frontline customers. As Gaines notes, for park directors, this means being intentional with respect to availability, managing volume, and empowering people. For instance, if a ranger wants to inspire his customers on a park visit, the best thing to do is view the experience through their perspective and gauge feedback directly. Once this type of connection is established, the ranger can then analyze the feedback as a manager and apply the appropriate changes if necessary.  Ultimately, if a leader wants to be more effective, it starts with knowing, interacti

In this edition of the Park Leaders Show, Phil Gaines returns to discuss the importance of staying relevant on the job. For many employers, relevant can seem like a relative term. What’s relevant for one job description isn’t necessarily relevant for another; however, when we consider the value in staying relevant, we find the attitude involved is necessary to relating to broader audiences, employees, and clients.  According to Gaines, staying relevant means we engage cultural changes and trends into our learning pursuits. With many functions shared among multiple generations, it’s essential today’s managers and leaders distinguish timeless versus temporary within their references. By using current tools to analyze and communicate information, supervisors will ultimately be able to better relate to their workforce.

In this edition of the Park Leaders Show, JP Boneyard, Creative Director of The Fifty-Nine Parks Print Series and producer of the National Poster Retrospecticus, discusses how he got into curating, hosting events, and what the screen printing process is like. Stirred by national history and preservation, Boneyard started the Fifty-Nine Parks Print Series, in part, to tour his collection of over 400 hand-printed posters across the globe. A master of handcrafted posters, Boneyard’s aim is to draw attention to the beauty of national parks and hopes future generations will continue to find new ways to capture scenic glory.

In this edition of the Park Leaders Show, Jon Jarvis, Executive Director of the Institute for Parks, People and Biodiversity at the University of California Berkeley, returns to discuss his new book on conservation as well as recent tour tales. As Jarvis notes, in an era marked by diversity and technology, the need to capture unity in conservation is significant. With emerging generations active on sociopolitical issues, it’s important the scientists of today pour into the people of tomorrow. Motivated by this, Jarvis talks about what it means to engage conservation at the local level and how to communicate environmental strategies to those passionate about societal justice.