22 in 22 Working Group Page
This is an initiative to get people out to 22 of Monroe County’s parks in 2022. We hope this community effort will lead to more awareness of the natural beauty in our parks, greater connection among our neighbors and ultimately a healthier community. People will participate by getting out on their own with the help of our resources, join the events we organize, and join events organized by others. The main activities of the working group organizers and contributors are developing a set of resources that highlight the parks and activities in them, develop materials that will incentivize participation and community building, and organizing events that will connect people to the parks and each other.
What are we hoping to accomplish?
- encourage people to get into the parks
- create social experiences
- highlight our beautiful parks
- connect people to nature and community
- inspire stewardship
- create nature lovers for life
Guiding Questions
- How do we encourage people to get into the parks and become nature lovers for life?
- What structures will highlight our parks, create social experiences, and inspire stewardship?
Project Origin
In December of 2021 a local father introduced the idea of an initative that would get people into the 22 Monroe County parks in 2022 to Rochester Ecology Partners Executive Director, Chris Widmaier. On January 1, Rochester Ecology Partners organized a First Day Hike that 80 people participated in. This interest, combined with the interest of other potential collaborators lead to the formation of a working group to lead the project.
Status
Updated February 7. Our Organizing team has been established, an organizing document has been developed and we are moving forward with developing communication channels, creating media to publicize the initiative, developing park resources, and planning events that will get people out in the parks together.
You Can Help Us
We are seeking contributors to this project. Please reach out if you are interested in working with us to make this happen. We appreciate any support you are able to offer, even if it is just an hour of your time.
We need people to help us
- as members of the organizing team
- design and create media for digital and print
- develop resources about the park
- create and maintain communication channels (website, social media)
- engage sponsors and partners
- get the word out!
About Rochester Ecology Partner Working Groups
This is initiative is lead by a community working group. Working groups are a structure we have adopted for organizing community programs. It starts with a few catalysts discussing an idea. If the idea is something others are interested in, a working group is form. Working groups are lead by a facilitator and guided by a process that will lead to a community of people doing work that is equitable, just, and focused on achieving the goals of a project, event, or strategic priority.