Home | Grant and Funding Opportunities | Parks Pass Grant | Sample Programs

Please note that these programs do not all focus on state parks. The passes only allow entry into state parks.

• See some ideas in our Program Showcase from April 6, 2022 , and in the grantee’s Community of Practice presentations: including information on Storywalks, Circulating Outdoor Gear, and Programming. You will need to log in to CALL Academy to view, but it is free to join.
• This webinar was co-hosted with State Parks and includes program examples in partnership with State Parks.
• Grantees of the first round of the Parks Pass grant, which ran from 2022-2023, present on their projects including story walks, parks-based programming, and circulating outdoor gear.

Circulating Items

What items could encourage your communities to get outside and into parks?

A panel from the 2022 Future of Libraries conference highlighting Library of Things, including outdoor gear.

• Nature Explorer backpacks – could include maps, naturalist guides, binoculars, outdoor safety information, bug viewing box, sunscreen, etc.
  • Murrieta’s Parks Pass Kits
  • Salinas Outdoor Adventure Packs
  • Santa Clara City Hiking Collection
  • Sonoma’s Discovery Packs
  • Glendale (AZ)’s Discovery and Exploration Backpacks
  • Colorado’s Check Out State Parks backpack
  • List from Programming Librarian
• Fishing rods
• Tents
• Snowshoes and Other Outdoor Equipment
• Telescope
• GPS Unit
• Nevada County Library Recreation Collection

Library Outside 

How can you bring your library and communities into the parks with your programming?

• Field trips and shuttles – reduce transportation barriers
  • San Francisco
  • Tulare County: Family Star Hike
  • Expedition L.A.: Fungi Walk and Talk
  • National City: Trolley field trips
• Storywalks in parks
  • San Ramon
  • Delta Libraries (CO)
  • San Francisco (a webinar)
• Tips for storytimes in Parks, Rangers at storytimes
• Virtual programming
  • Programming Librarian ideas
  • Madera County Library: Agents of Discovery Augmented Reality
  • PORTS
• Yoga, storytimes, scavenger hunts in parks (provide admission if an in-person class?)
• Hiking
  • Art Hike to Heal
  • Art hike

Natural Education

What knowledge will help build a culture of natural resource stewardship?

• Citizen science
  • Riverside SciStarter kits
  • Mono Lake BioBlitz
• Naturalist programs
  • Naturalist programs with PORTS
    • Riverside County’s Zoom to the Parks program – custom blended virtual and in-person events
  • Native plants
  • Indigenous natural resource stewardship
• Sustainability
  • Monrovia: fire information

Outdoor Skills

What skills may help your communities feel comfortable in parks?

• The Accessible Outdoors: Safely Exploring and Protecting the Nature Around You
• Fix a flat
• Hiking Skills class
• Camping from Home
• Booklists and hike suggestions
• Nature Journaling
• Virtual tours and orientations
• Map reading
• Nature photography
• Partnerships with local BIPOC organizations

Cultural and Historical Connections

What historical or cultural celebrations, places, or creations can your library support?

• Patron-created
  • Book of kids art about your local park, flora, fauna
  • Patron-created field guide
  • Mural
  • Plein air art workshops in parks
  • Photo contest
  • Nature explorer zines
• Little Free Libraries in parks
  • Book Trees
  • San Francisco
• Film festivals at or about parks and issues facing local natural spaces
• Author interviews at parks (livestream)
• Cerritos Library: Geographic Literacy Writing Workshop
• Author-led hikes
• Indigenous and tribal initiatives
  • Engage in reexamining our past initiative
  • Storywalk from original language picture books
• Storytelling
  • Librarian-led tours
  • Anythink Drive-in
  • Campfire storytelling at parks

Other

Looking at the research and other resources, what may be barriers for your communities to accessing parks? What can the library provide that you already provide?  For instance, these grantees are non-profits working on improving access to parks.