TRENDS

GATEWAY to the FUTURE

"Gateway to the Future" was held in September 1993 and sponsored by the Illinois Park and Recreation Association's Future and Trends Committee. The intent of the conference was to prepare the audience to understand the trends of the future. Gateway brought four internationally known speakers to address the future of global economy, communities in the 21st century, government and leisure. Presenters on the first day were Dr. Hazel Henderson, David Pearce Snyder, Ted Gaebler and Dr. Ken Balmer. Dr. Henderson is the author of five books, the most recent is Paradigms In Progress. David Snyder is a social forecaster who edits the "Lifestyles Section" of Futurist Magazine. Ted Gaebler is co-author of the bestselling Reinventing Government. Dr. Balmer is President of RETHINK (West) and past president of the Canadian Parks/ Recreation Association. Dr. Balmer wrote the summary of the two days of discussions included in this article.

In our first article, "Gateway to the Future — Part One," we identified our "vision" of parks and recreation for the future. Imagine that the year 2003 has arrived and our vision has, in fact, been realized. A decade has passed, full of initiative and innovation, and parks and recreation agencies have gone through the transformation anticipated by futurists. Many of the principles and precedents described by Ted Gaebler in Reinventing Government are now common practice. We have placed ourselves squarely on the social economic and environmental agendas of the communities we together serve.

Our accomplishments through the '90s are summarized below. We are in the future, the year 2003, looking back with pride.

CHAMPION OF THE WELLNESS IMPERATIVE
The '90s began with the realization that our health systems were overloaded, extremely expensive and difficult to access for many. We had also come to understand that many of the expensive treatments required of the medical community were preventable — related to lifestyle issues such as inactivity, smoking and drinking, substance abuse, stress, alienation and imbalance. Our health system was struggling to develop new models of health care and also find the resources to invest in health promotion and early intervention, lifestyle-related antidotes.

Our recreation agencies reached into their fitness and therapeutic backgrounds to seize the obvious opportunity. Often, only minor shifts in the way we managed or marketed our programs were required to convince our communities that we were a key preventive service. We found many health and medical practitioners willing to work with us through the transition — in many cases, forming lasting strategic alliances of obvious value to both partners.

As we entered the 21st century:
• Virtually all park districts had modified their mission statements to declare their responsibility for the improvement of community health and wellness.
• Our programs had broadened from a physical focus to a holistic health and wellness orientation.
• We were marketing ourselves to the community in ways that constantly reminded them of

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TRENDS

Looking back with the advantage of hindsight, it's now easy to see that the '90s also heralded significant change in the make-up of our market. Until that time, many of us had failed to realize that our traditional customer/user base was declining and that there was an increased need to respond to the economically disadvantaged, expanding ethnic minorities, challenged populations (physically, mentally, socially), alienated youth, isolated and lonely adults.

the health choice — "join us now in a quest for fit, active lifestyles; or visit later, after a health crisis, on doctor's orders."
• Society had come to appreciate the adage "pay now or pay more later" and was prepared to invest in recreation services that stressed wellness to reduce public sector medical and health budgets.
• By the year 2003, all of our park districts were operating wellness centers, often in partnership with community schools, offering programs in fitness, nutrition, health maintenance, and stress management. We were employing the opportunity of leisure, of fun, of physical games to create healthy individuals and communities.
• Wellness education programs are developed cooperatively by recreation and education agencies and made accessible to all through school curricula, park district programs and cable television.
• Wellness programs are developed and offered through alliances with public health departments, hospitals, alternative medical groups, nursing homes and clinics.
• Recreation agencies are recognized as "wellness providers" by the health profession and insurance companies. Many of our clients are receiving significant premium reductions in return for regular participation in our programs.

A MAJOR CATALYST AND ADVOCATE FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
The '90s also witnessed a dramatic expansion in public commitment to environmental stewardship. Our citizens and communities were more vocal in their concerns about pollution, waste, disappearing habitat, disruption of environmentally significant areas, and environmentally unfriendly management practices. Political leaders, industry and business were quick to respond as it became evident that the taxpayers, voters and consumers were making choices based on the emerging "green ethic."

Park districts were again able to capitalize on their legacy — in this case their long-standing tradition of environmental protection and advocacy. They positioned themselves as local government leaders in the environmental movement. By the year 2003:
• Park and recreation agencies throughout Illinois were recognized and supported as stewards of the natural environment — a catalyst for community commitment to protection of natural areas and managers of a world class network of natural corridors and nodes — leaders in the greening of our communities.
• We were fully involved in the planning and land development process and, with public support, were helping to ensure adherence to ecologically sound principles and practices.
• Policies developed in Illinois had been adopted throughout North America as models for wetland and watershed management, wildlife corridor and habitat protection, environmental protection standards, cluster zoning, urban forestry.
• Our initiatives had mobilized a veritable army of environmental volunteers — "adopt a park" programs, cooperative development projects with nonprofit and business partners, volunteer rangers and interpreters, etc.
• Support for our public education initiatives increased substantially through the '90s. By the turn of the century we were recognized leaders in environmental education, sponsoring social marketing campaigns to increase awareness of issues and responsibilities; networking and involving environmentalists in "hands on" outdoor education programming for the public; linked with the schools to ensure a full range of progressive environmental learning opportunities at all levels.
• By 2003 our outdoor recreation programs had grown to become the major service area in most park districts.
• We had become models of ecologically sound operations — each and every agency committed to reduced and responsible chemical application, waste reduction and recycling, reduction of energy consumption and adoption of alternate fuels, adjusting and customized maintenance levels to each site (often to the point of full naturalization).

PROGRAMMING AND FACILITIES ACCESSIBLE TO ALL
Looking back with the advantage of hindsight, it's now easy to see that the '90s also heralded significant change in the make-up of our market. Until that time, many of us had failed to realize that our traditional customer/user base was declining and that there was an increased need to respond to the economically disadvantaged, expanding ethnic minorities, challenged populations (physically, mentally, socially), alienated youth, isolated and lonely adults. Many of us had placed so much emphasis on revenue producing services that we had neglected the democratic concepts of full participation, inclusion, and the right to access publicly owned programs and facilities.

In the mid-'90s the field re-convinced the public and key decision makers that recreation was an

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TRENDS

In the mid-'90s the field re-convinced the public and key decision makers that recreation was an ideal vehicle/or addressing problems associated with dysfunctional families, alienation and isolation, and ethnic unrest — and was, in fact, a priority preventive social service.

ideal vehicle for addressing problems associated with dysfunctional families, alienation and isolation, and ethnic unrest — and was, in fact, a priority preventive social service. It became obvious that the costs of identifying and working with "at risk" individuals, families and communities was far less than the costs of social assistance, welfare, special homes and institutionalization. Early intervention was also simply more humane. By the turn of the century:
• All facilities in the Illinois park and recreation system were barrier free. Our marketing and management approaches aggressively encouraged participation by all regardless of ability level — a mix of integrated and special programs and services.
• Hours of operation had broadened to accommodate nontraditional schedules and lifestyles.
• We had found caring and supportive methods to welcome those who were unable to pay into our revenue producing programs.
• Park and recreation agencies had partnered with police and social services to reach out to individuals and groups readily identifiable as "high risk" — relatively unstructured programs and services to involve the alienated, the repeat offenders, the dropouts, and the dysfunctional household.
• Through public/private partnerships, we had developed extensive development and leadership opportunities for youth-fostering citizenship, community values, leadership, and a sense of ownership and pride in one's community.
• Alliances with cultural communities helped break down real and perceived barriers to participation. Our staff and written materials communicate in the major languages spoken in our communities. Ethnic festivals and events are common, attended by all. Many programs are developed to help our young people share the diverse backgrounds, their sports, arts and dance. Through the opportunity of leisure, our many cultures are learning to play, create, compete and grow together.
• Our boards, committees, volunteer corps and staff are now fully representative of the diverse populations we serve.

EXCELLENCE IN GOVERNMENT MANAGEMENT
David Pearce Snyder and other futurists were right a decade ago (1993) when they forecast a continuing climate of public sector restraint. A restructuring economy, plagued by transitional unemployment and high levels of investment in retooling, did not yield the traditional tax support required for government services. And the public continued its scepticism about the effectiveness of their investment in the government services well into the '90s — our parks and recreation agencies were forced to respond to increasing demand with decreasing traditional resources.

By 1995, however, the principles and practices described and prescribed in Reinventing Government, by Gaebler and Osborne, were well accepted and public confidence was gradually being restored, particularly at the local government and special district level. And by the year 2003, Illinois park and recreation agencies were held up as models of government excellence by our citizens and by the other jurisdictions that frequently studied and emulated our approach.
• Partnerships with related public and private agencies and organizations are now the norm. Any duplication that did exist has been dealt with. All resources (facilities, human, fiscal) are shared and used to maximum capacity, and cooperative approaches have generated a much wider, more diversified and innovative range of services — with ever increasing market appeal.
• Professional standards of park and recreation management excellence have been adopted and endorsed through the state. Virtually all staff are certified at either state or national levels, often by two fields (e.g., recreation and social services for our child and youth staff, recreation and health for our therapeutic and wellness specialists).
• Throughout the '90s, the field adopted modem communication and information technologies. We now share our expertise, experience and information through common, electronic databases, bulletin boards and expert systems. Our customer service and marketing systems guarantee awareness, responsiveness to changing demand, and easy access to our services. Many facility management functions are monitored and managed by remote sensors and expert, computerized maintenance management systems, and our financial decisions are based on "real time" information accounted at point of sale.
• The "enterprising" approach to government services has been totally accepted by the public and given formal policy endorsement. On the recreation side, the majority of our operations are "profit centers" capable of subsidizing special programs, low income participants, and other programs, events and services that have been traditionally dependent of full tax support.
• Partnerships and cosponsorships with the private sector are common, bringing additional financial support to our higher profile services, parks and facilities.

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LEADERS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR MOVEMENT TOWARD PARTNERSHIPS AND STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
Long independent public agencies began to partner up, without losing either their independence or identity, in the mid-'90s to address issues that fell on the boundaries of individual mandates: lifelong discretionary (leisure) learning, health promotion, preventive social services, helping alienated and "at risk" youth develop life skills and a positive self-image, and supporting the dysfunctional family. Recreation and park agencies were able to reach into their tradition of excellence in each of these areas for the foundations of new and innovative approaches that made learning, growing and changing fun, providing neighborhood based opportunities unencumbered by the institutional baggage and formality of other human services.

In most cases, the new alliances began through informal networking initiated by the park and recreation field. The first challenge was to share the wealth of research linking the benefits and impact of recreation to the missions and mandates of these related fields. The second was to convince managers of related services that joint initiatives would be "win-win" and achieve more without requiring many additional resources.

By the year 2003:
• Park and recreation agencies had programs and services in virtually every community, often housed in facilities owned and managed by other public agencies (schools, hospitals, community health centers, libraries, etc.).
• We had found many ways to share personnel, training, programs, information clearing houses, needs identification, research and technology/equipment, as well as facilities. Organizational efficiency increased and overhead decreased.
• Our wellness mandate and success was widely appreciated and supported, building many bridges to the health community.
• Our ability to help individuals, families and communities develop positive lifestyles, and citizenship skills/perspectives inspired strong and diverse links with police and social services.
• Our ability to make learning fun led logically to full partnerships with the educational community, enhancing continuing education and leisure learning opportunities for adults, and contributing in many ways to both curriculum and extracurricular activities for the school-aged child or youth.
• As the role of recreation and parks in tourism and as an economic development magnet became more fully appreciated, we found ourselves working closely with the tourism industry, chambers of commerce and economic development authorities.

The vision created in 1993 by leaders of the Illinois park and recreation field continued to make sense and have motivational appeal right through the decade and into the 21st century. These same leaders displayed the commitment required to make the vision live and become real. In 2003, we can look back with pride on our accomplishments and with sincere appreciation to the strategic leadership and foresight that made it all possible. *

The complete "Gateway to the Future" report is available for $5,
Contact:
Illinois Park and Recreation Association
IN 141 County Farm Road
Winfield, IL 60190
(708)752-0141
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