As the largest natural areas in urban spaces, park systems can offer ideal potential sites for implementing green stormwater infrastructure. Despite alignment on a number of policy goals between parks and water agencies, such as creating more resilient and sustainable green spaces, parks are presently underutilized for this purpose due to structural challenges between these sectors, including siloed policies and planning, funding sources, and their distinct agency cultures.
In this Innovation Round, participants will hear from parks and water agencies in cities that are breaking the logjam to collaboration and providing benefits ranging from creating new green spaces, to improving climate resilience, enhancing public health, and building more equitable communities. Participants will have the opportunity for direct discussion with presenters in the second half of the session.
Support provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Identify the challenges faced by parks and water agencies in achieving collaboration for implementing green stormwater infrastructure in urban spaces.
- Recognize how parks and water agencies can collaborate to establish resilient and sustainable green spaces, highlighting policy goals that they share.
- Recognize innovative solutions and successful case studies of collaboration between parks and water agencies in various cities for implementing green stormwater infrastructure.
- Discuss the benefits of collaboration between parks and water agencies, including creating new green spaces, improving climate resilience, enhancing public health, and building more equitable communities.
