Educational Outreach/Cleveland Parks Institute and Other Initiatives
ParkWorks is committed to providing information and programs that motivate people to be environmentally responsible. In addition to its major educational endeavors such as the Green Schools program and Landscape Training Program, ParkWorks educates the community in the many ways set forth below.

Cleveland Parks Institute
Now in its third year and with the support of the Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds and George Gund Foundation, ParkWorks hosts this one-day conference modeled after the Urban Parks Institute. The mission of the day is to inspire, challenge, and educate participants, as well as inform them about national trends and practices relating to urban parks and green space in an effort to elevate such issues on Cleveland's civic agenda. Participants include employees of the City of Cleveland Parks Department and the Cleveland Municipal School District Operations Department, community development professionals, and other parks advocates.

Land Use and Outmigration Awareness
Through the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, ParkWorks initiated a pilot program addressing land use decision-making. With funding from the Nord Foundation, we have produced an educational video and discussion guide regarding outmigration and the effects of unplanned rural development on ecosystems.

Cleveland Parks Book
Working with noted local author Diana Tittle and in partnership with the Ohio University Press, ParkWorks will publish a book about more than 13 parks in the Cleveland area, highlighting many visionaries, whose advocacy resulted in some of our region's most important public spaces.

City Parks Alliance
ParkWorks staff members have joined colleagues in several cities in an effort to build a national movement to raise awareness about the value of parks and green space in the urban landscape. Linked by mutual support from the Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds, 17 cities currently receiving grants to improve urban parks are working to shape a national agenda for this growing movement.