It is imperative the goals and needs of a playground’s target community be assessed prior to the start of a project. The baseline process for public involvement for a traditional playground typically looks like this:

‍

‍

Because many stakeholders are unfamiliar with nature play and its benefits, the following deviations from the standard approach are recommended:

‍

‍

Community involvement

A community meeting should be interactive, and include members from:

• Local organizations
  
• Youth groups
  
• Church groups
  
• Schools
  
• Daycare centers
  
• Neighborhood associations
  
• Maintenance staff
  
• Gardening clubs
  
• Other relevant community organizations/members
  

Stations should be set up in strategic locations to create interest nodes for individuals to express their thoughts in an open, creative atmosphere. Ideally, food and entertainment are provided as a natural attraction for families to join in an informal idea-gathering session. The entertainment can be local students or individuals that enjoy sharing their art with others, such as a school choir or band, preschool performance or dance group.

Traditionally, public meetings about park spaces are located indoors, in an area centrally located for the intended user group. Recognizing that most constituents are not familiar with nature play, the ideal location to conduct the public meeting should be outdoors, at the intended project site where future users can be exposed to nature play experiences and its benefits.

Community outreach

Receiving input from as many people as possible at the first community meeting leads to the best possible outcomes in subsequent meetings. In addition to idea gathering, outreach can consist of neighborhood canvassing, online surveys, and online reminders of upcoming events.

Follow-up is necessary to ensure the public has received information about upcoming meetings, and that information was communicated in a timely manner and understandable format. All efforts should be taken to ensure a core group of end users are available and committed to attending the meetings. To this end, a designated team member, such as an employee or member of the design team, should be given the responsibility of reaching out to attendees, and verifying their attendance.

It’s also wise to consider what outreach will look like after the project is completed. If, for example, a group is animating the nature space on a regular basis, the design may require additional storage for loose parts, tools, log sheets and other useful materials.

The animation of parks and playgrounds is key to less vandalism. Clubs, institutions, educators, religious groups, naturalists and neighbors all have a vested interest in the success of a park or playground. Involve them from the start. Include their needs in early assessments. Design to accommodate their programs and buy-in will ensue.

Idea jamming

Idea jamming is a successful way to encourage a more dynamic interaction with the public, making them ideal for nature play projects. Idea jamming is designed to:

• Be a catalyst of creativity that appeals to all.
• Help bring communities together to work on projects from discovery to deployment.
• Shift the focus from what’s wrong to what’s strong.
• Always begin with site analysis and research to explore and understand the local context.
• Be dynamic, energizing, entertaining, and effective. It’s part community street party, part coffee shop meetup, part talk series, all fun.
• Always be a collaboration with “host” neighborhood organizations/municipalities.  
• Be asset-based and community-driven.
• Begin with short talks to help explore the event’s theme, and include hands-on and collaborative activities that are tuned to address different styles of learning and communication (such as asset mapping, community commitment boards, graphic recording, sandbox charrettes, chalk town, walking studies, video walls, message mapping, role playing, story exchanges, etc.).
• Take place in unexpected locations, such as parks, alleyways, or closed storefronts, to attract people to the event and bring out their creativity.
• Distill the ideation process into tactical action packages. These can include touchstone reports, preliminary site designs, graphics and illustrations, videos and animations, strategic action and policy plans.
  

Education

Since nature play is a new concept for most people, community involvement begins with education. An ongoing and open dialogue that defines nature play, its multifaceted benefits, and corresponding research is a critical starting point.

Knowledgeable facilitators can hold public information sessions. To gain insight into the needs of stakeholders, facilitators can have one-on-one discussions that can be brought back to the larger group. Information boards and handouts can be provided to individuals who prefer to read about nature play and its benefits.

Special care should be taken to educate the public about the difference in appearance among traditional, post-and-platform playgrounds and natural playgrounds. Vibrant visuals of existing nature play areas and natural playgrounds should be provided throughout the meeting. If available, conceptual graphics of the proposed project should be included.

Hands-on activities, such as park modeling, can encourage individuals to draw and write specific features they would like to include in the final park design.

Hosting a meeting at the project site gives the public an opportunity to share stories about the space, recognize its history, and identify existing site features that will remain in place. It also allows the public to begin visualizing the end product more accurately.

Ongoing engagement

As children grow and new families move to an area, a park’s user base evolves. For this reason, it is important to educate users on a consistent basis to ensure the area is used as intended. This can include organizing:

• Trash pick-up days
  
• Community events on the site
  
• Educational opportunities with key stakeholders involved in the initial project outreach
  

Reconnecting with key groups periodically will maintain an interest in the project, promote long-term ownership, strengthen the community, and engage new users.

Consultant collaboration

Members of the consultant team need to consider potential play value and connection to nature opportunities when dealing with project constraints such as site conditions and budgets, as well as when designing seemingly unrelated features such as entryways, circulation patterns, stormwater management, planting plans, or topographic change.

Governmental agencies should identify and involve all potentially impacted parties early in the design stage to ensure all are aware of the project. Demonstrating to everyone how each team member’s involvement and input shapes a project can help ensure its long-term success. It is often through these early meetings and conversations that risk managers can be guided through the benefits of nature play.

Moreover, this early involvement philosophy can lead to a more cost-effective project. Projects with overlapping intents can combine design and construction efforts. For example, resources to enhance a park adjacent to a waterway can be used to rehabilitate and stabilize the waterway.

Including all consultants and governmental entities early in the design will also allow the various agencies to begin stockpiling material for use in the end design. This can include logs from forestry projects, and boulders and soil from other construction projects.