Ten Tips for Volunteers & Volunteer Park Programs

Are you inclined to build recreational trails, plant wildflowers, draw maps, grow shellfish, survey birds, pick up trash, comment on park management plans, teach others about the outdoors, or work on other actions to help good parks become quality parks? Consider yourself a volunteer natural resource specialist, as much of a professional as paid staff. Learn how to do better.

1. Be clear about why you want to volunteer. Volunteer park programs build stewardship values and reduce a park operating costs. Volunteer park programs improve skill sets and offers a positive experience outdoors. New friends can be found along the way as you provide this valuable green service to your community. Jot down some notes as to why you want to volunteer. For the park manager, jot down the projects that could use volunteer natural resource specialists.

2. How long should you volunteer as a natural resource specialist? It's just as important to end a volunteer experience, as it is to know how to start. It keeps volunteers fresh, not exploited, and not complaining of being worn out by what was once fun. For the park manager, you can adjust time spent around a volunteer's level of commitment. Don't go chasing after volunteers with low commitment levels. But do spend time on the most promising. To make it easier, volunteers should offer a farewell thank you letter explaining what was gained from the volunteer experience. The park manager should ask volunteers to fill out a satisfaction survey.

3. Now that you have an idea of the why and the how long, volunteer park programs can also inspire volunteer natural resource specialists to help with larger conservation challenges. For the volunteer, this will offer the most growth potential. For the park manager, this means having a process in place that shows volunteers how they can participate in current park policy decisions, and in so doing, cultivate broader interest.

4. Do take note of where former volunteers end up and find out how you can contact them. Besides being a good networking opportunity, it also gives you insight on what the volunteer experience can offer. Do prior volunteers end up in places where you'd like to see yourself? And how has their volunteer experience helped them out? Keeping track of former volunteers can help future recruitment efforts and document the benefit of the volunteer park program.

5. What kind of training or certification is offered and what does this entitle volunteers to do? Hands on training compliments lectures to ensure adequate capabilities. For the volunteer, how independent can your actions be? Much like a hunting or fishing license, ask if you can go out on your own if you keep missing organized outings. For the park manager, you can partner with other organizations if you don't have time for a training program of your own.

6. What kind of support is built into the volunteer park program? Can volunteers get additional equipment or staff assistance when needed? For the volunteer, ask if you will be trained in safety procedures. In writing Sunrise Fire, a book about firefighting and forestry conservation, I trained as a volunteer firefighter. We trained with our gloves on so that in a real fire situation we could work with our tools wearing gloves to protect our hands. What procedures are in place for you as a volunteer natural resource specialist? Don't forget, or hesitate, to ask.

7. How comfortable will you feel about offering advice? For the volunteer, you must not feel like an outsider. For the park manager, make sure the insights offered by your volunteers are appreciated and acted upon as worthy feedback. This will encourage a shared sense of stewardship values and build future leaders.

8. What kind of equipment comes with the volunteer experience? T-shirts, mugs, and end of the season barbeques are great, but what about useful equipment needs for on the job volunteer effort? What about pooled equipment and transportation? For the volunteer, find out if you must use your own resources to purchase clothing, boots, monitoring tools, shovels, gloves, etc.

9. At some point volunteers may want to trade up for a paid green job. For the volunteers, find out if there are internships or staff positions where you volunteer. For the park manager, keep them informed about job openings as they arise. But if there are few paid positions available, consider other incentives. Are you aware of the Payment for Ecological Services programs? Help get such a program in place for your park. It can be used to compensate volunteers for their green service to parklands.

10. Finally, if no volunteer park program is available in your community, then consider what local hiking, fishing, hunting, biking clubs, and other charitable organizations offer. Ask the same questions about these programs as well, but remember to clarify who is responsible for what in terms of the park manager, group, and yourself. I address such an alternative arrangement in Lost Heritage, an adventure story about adopting a natural resource.

The challenge is not to better manage the public but to instead come to terms with a new form of recreation that creates meaningful volunteer park programs. Laura Whitmore, Parks Community Relations Coordinator for the City of Madison, Wisconsin runs a park volunteer program. This is but one example of a working park volunteer program. She added one more tip: the need for improved communications between volunteers and park managers (http://www.ci.madison.wi.us/parks/).