Resources

Resources for Park and Recreation Professionals

With help from our members and research partners, we make the following resources and tools available to equip parks and recreation departments, municipalities, urban design and landscape architecture firms, and advocacy organizations to enhance capacity and build equitable, healthy, and engaged communities.

Plan
ASLA Climate Action Plan
American Society of Landscape Architects
To get on a pathway to zero emissions, ASLA is taking a significant step forward with this Climate Action Plan.
Member Exclusive
Ecological Horticulture at the Presidio
Presidio Trust
Note that this guide is specific to the area it describes and includes design guidance for ecologically supportive urban landscaped areas.
Member Exclusive
Technical Tool
FireSmart BC Landscaping Guide
FireSmart BC/City of Vancouver
This guide from British Columbia includes an extensive list of fire-resistant plants, and tips on making your landscaping more wildfire resilient.
Technical Tool
The Hospital Green Space Cost Savings Calculator
Nature Sacred
Estimate how much your institution could save costs associated with burnout among hospital staff by establishing a hospital biophilia intervention.
Member Exclusive
Technical Tool
Vancouver Park Board Best Management Practices Cutsheets
Vancouver Park Board
Contains BMPs for a variety of naturalized meadows, including no mow, low mow, enhanced low mow, and wildflower, as well as design and layout options.
Member Exclusive
Report
PAS QuickNotes: Climate-Resilient Pollinator Gardens
American Planning Association
Pollinator gardens increase climate resiliency and provide ecological, environmental, and health benefits.
Policy
Recommendations to Create a 21st Century Civilian Climate Corps
The Corps Network
How to engage thousands of young Americans in community improvement, conservation and resilience projects.
Case Study
The Brickline Greenway: Charting a Path towards Social Equity in St. Louis
City Parks Alliance
With cities everywhere focused squarely on equity issues right now, it is a hopeful time for those in St. Louis who’ve been advocating for, funding, and buildi…
Report
2020 Menino Survey of Mayors
Boston University Initiative on Cities
Mayors have had to deal with COVID-19’s consequences and its impact on their cities' future. Between June and August 2020 this Survey asked 130 mayors about th…
Technical Tool
East Bay Regional Park District FEMA Application
East Bay Regional Park District
A model application for FEMA funds following 2005 rain storms at the Great House Portal, when the Black Diamond Mines started caving in.