NAI 2010 will feature more than 100 concurrent sessions in 3 tracks over three days. Presentation tracks include Programs, Management, and Media.

Attendance at concurrent sessions is included in the workshop registration fee. Full information for each session, including day, time and location, will be available soon on the workshop website. Sessions are listed alphabetically by title below.

The 2010 NAI National Workshop Program Guide, which also has session information, is scheduled to be available online for download in early October 2010. Sessions may change without notice, please make sure to check at the registration desk in Las Vegas for current session times.

Click here to view the list of sessions.

 

Jeremy Spoon, PhD
“Drawing Meaningful Connections: Interpreting Indigenous Relationships with Ancestral Landscapes in Participatory Ways”

Jeremy is assistant professor of anthropology at Portland State University and a research associate at The Mountain Institute in Washington D.C. His interests in local ecological knowledge, environmental sustainability, mountainous protected areas, place-based spirituality, and political economy have led him on a unique path to interpretation’s door. His focus on connecting indigenous people and interpretation has taken him from Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park to Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park (Nepal), Hell’s Gate National Park (Kenya) and now to the Great Basin where he has conducted efforts that facilitate people from seven nations of indigenous Nuwuvi (Southern Paiute/Chemehuevi) to tell their stories in the public forum of interpretation.

He is collaborating with these seven nations to create interpretive and educational content for a planned visitor center, trails, campgrounds, and picnic areas in the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area. A group of tribally designated representatives co-conducted the research and writing for the project. They also created text for the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Vegetation Plan—ensuring that the proposed developments are culturally appropriate to the nations that consider the Spring Mountains to be their creation place and an important source of resources.

A second local project funded by the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act (SNPLMA) is creating a government-to-government consultation method for these seven nations and the U.S. Forest and Fish and Wildlife Services by generating proposed collaborative consultation and resource management plans for multiple protected areas in southern Nevada. Ecological knowledge is also being collected from indigenous expert knowledge-holders, who will also serve on resource management advisory committees that conduct forest surveys. Finally, families will be invited to harvest pine nuts—promoting intergenerational knowledge transmission of language, stories, songs, and resource management practices.

Jeremy and his Nuwuvi colleagues will share with us some success stories that came about through American Indian and government agency collaboration and how visitor experiences will be enhanced by interpretation through indigenous eyes.

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Sharon Schafer
“The Art of Nature”

Sharon K. Schafer has a varied background ranging from painter and photographer to wildlife biologist and river guide. As a full-time artist, she combines two loves—nature and art. In an effort promote a deeper understanding and appreciation of the natural world, she has dedicated herself to the creation of beautifully artistic yet scientifically accurate images that appeal to the art collector and the environmental educator alike.

Schafer’s sense of adventure and unflagging curiosity about the natural world have taken her to the ends of the earth. She has worked extensively as an artist, photographer, and videographer in the Arctic, Africa, and the Antarctic. Throughout the world, Schafer shares her artistic talent and passion for the wildlands by teaching art and nature-related classes and lecturing extensively about the stunning beauty and amazing diversity of life on our planet.

Her excellence as a wildlife painter has been recognized by the international Society of Animal Artists as well as the Artists for Conservation. Her paintings have been juried into numerous national competitions and displayed nationwide. Schafer’s current traveling show, “The Art of Nature: Images from the Wildlands of Southern Nevada,” which was developed in collaboration with the Nevada State Museum, will be on exhibit during the NAI National Workshop.

Schafer’s multimedia presentation of photographs, paintings, and field sketches, blended with music will take you on a journey into the wildlands of southern Nevada. She will demonstrate and discuss how the visual arts provide a vital and  effective tool with which to engage visitors and evoke a deeper understanding and emotional appreciation of the beauty and diversity of the natural world.

She is currently working in collaboration with the Wilderness Team of the Southern Nevada Agency Partnership (SNAP)—a unique partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service—to bring this program to the visitors and residents of the southern Nevada in an effort to raise awareness of the region’s wilderness areas. This innovative project, which is funded by the Southern Nevada Lands Management Act, will use the visual arts to encourage the viewer to come away with a different perspective: no longer seeing the public lands of southern Nevada as a desert wasteland, but rather as a place of unparalleled natural beauty and diversity that is deserving of their care and concern.

 

Friday, November 19, will be more relaxed than the previous two educational and intensive days of the National Workshop. We will take behind-the scenes looks at interpretive facilities, heritage resource venues, and other local places to visit with those who know these locations best. There is a fee above regular workshop registration to cover the cost of these optional off-site sessions.

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1. Rafting the Black Canyon of the Colorado River
Share in the history, desert wildlife, and beauty of the Black Canyon of the Colorado River aboard a motor-assisted raft.

Black Canyon is the canyon where Hoover Dam was built and this excursion will provide an extremely rare view of the dam that very few people have the opportunity to see—from the bottom up. The high canyon walls rising nearly 2,000 feet from the river’s edge are massive and impressive.

River guides will steer you through this magnificent geological area. Surrounded by the El Dorado Mountains, which were formed about 15 million years ago, Black Canyon gets its name from the black volcanic rocks that are found throughout the area. If we are fortunate, we may see desert bighorn sheep, ospreys, or great blue herons. We may also see archaeological and mining artifacts from decades past.

We will spend three to three and a half hours on 12 miles of gentle water enjoying the terrain’s variation from sheer cliffs of multicolored rocks to sandy beaches and secluded coves.

Cost: $105
Time: 8:15am–4:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: One Hour Each Way (Two Hours Total)
Accessibility: Travel will be by motorcoach; put-in area will have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sunscreen, Layered Warm Clothes, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 55

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2. Wildlife on the Strip: Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat (Half Day)
Right on the Strip is an attraction that defines the wild in Vegas in a whole new way. Join NAI as we go to The Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage where tigers, lions, leopards, and dolphins enjoy a side of Vegas few get to experience. Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat is an education and research-based facility that hosts thousands of school children each year for educational programs. It also serves as a place of enjoyment and education for hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. Curator of Education Missy Giannantonio will talk to our group about their Ocean Totes, education trunks that teach about our fragile ocean resource and their educational programs offered to K–12 school students.

You will be delighted when we enter the wonderful, secluded, behind-the-scenes world of beautiful wildcats. This attraction displays six different showcases of lions, tigers and leopards.

Whether you come to see the dolphins or some of the rarest white lions in the world, The Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat may prove to be a workshop highlight.

Cost: $20
Time: 8:30am–12:30pm
Meals Included: None
Travel Time: 30 Minutes [Maximum] Each Way
Accessibility: Our group will be walking the approximate one mile from the Riviera to the Mirage; facilities are accessible.
Suggested Gear: Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 40

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3. Exploring the Mojave Desert: Red Rock Canyon and Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (NCA) was the first designated as an NCA managed by the Bureau of Land Management in November 1990.

Red Rock Canyon has lots of geology, history, and natural history to explore. From the basket makers of the Paiute to the cowboys and settlers of the Old Spanish Trail, foundations of a sandstone quarry and archery range, to ranching, its history spans many eras. With 10 plant species indigenous only to Red Rock Canyon, naturalists will thrill to the local bionetwork that includes desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, Mojave green rattlesnakes, and wild burros.

Red Rock Canyon has recently built a new visitor center that is LEED certified and has a large inside gallery, picture window, amphitheater, and many state-of-the-art outside exhibits.

On our visit to Red Rock Canyon we will be talking with the manager as well as partners in the process and development of the new visitor center, meet artist and NAI National Workshop keynote speaker Sharon Schafer, who will have an artistic presentation of the desert life zones.

We will travel from Red Rock Canyon to Spring Mountain Ranch State Park, where we will learn about local history. The many springs in these mountains provided water for Paiute Indians and later brought mountain men and early settlers to the area. This oasis was later developed into a combination working ranch and luxurious retreat by a string of owners who have given the area a long and colorful history.

Cost: $45
Time: 8:45am-4:30pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: 45 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Trails have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 50

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4. Historic Ranching & Current Day Conservation: Walking Box Ranch (Half Day)
This session has been cancelled.

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5. Sandstone and Petroglyphs: Valley of Fire and Lost City Museum
Valley of Fire, Nevada’s largest state park, derives its colorful name from the spectacular multi-shaded red, golden yellow, and orange sandstone formations exposed there. The sandstone cliffs and rocks are part of the Navajo Sandstone Formation that is found throughout southern Nevada and in many areas of the Southwest.

This area was once the bottom of a deep ocean basin that eventually became part of a vast desert that existed about 150 to 180 million years ago. The eerie landscape formed from great shifting sand dunes, complex uplifting and faulting, followed by extensive erosion.

Early humans inhabited the area and left behind petroglyphs dated to over 3,000 years old. Their visits probably involved hunting, food gathering, and religious ceremonies. Fine examples of rock art can be found throughout the park.

We will leave Valley of Fire and head for theLost City Museum, where the story of the long-lived and rich civilization buried beneath the Mojave Desert sand is unearthed in meticulous detail. The artifacts there tell the story of people who for centuries traveled through and lived in southern Nevada. Archaeologist Dena Sedar has worked and studied these pieces of the past and will give us a glimpse of what life was like for the early inhabitants of the hot, dry Mojave Desert.

The museum is located on an actual prehistoric site of Ancestral Puebloan Indians who first populated southern Nevada beginning about 300 B.C. We will have the opportunity to see an excavated pit house and reconstructed Puebloan houses.

Cost: $50
Time: 8:30am–4:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: One Hour Each Way
Accessibility: Trails have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 30

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6. By Land and Water: Lake Mead National Recreation Area
The first and largest national recreation area in the National Park Service, Lake Mead NRA offers breathtaking desert landscapes, water recreation opportunities, and diverse natural and cultural resources. The park’s staff and partners use this setting to provide environmental education programs that teach local children about park issues, history, and life in the Mojave Desert.

Take a walk back in time on the Historic Railroad Trail. This easy, two-mile hike follows the path of trains that brought supplies needed to build Hoover Dam. Now used mostly for relaxation and fitness, the trail is also used in one of the park’s environmental education programs, Hiking Through History. Join an NPS ranger to learn more about the history, workers, and families of the Hoover Dam era.

After our hike, park interpreters will welcome us aboard Forever Earth, a houseboat converted into an aquatic classroom. While the boat cruises through the brilliant blue of Boulder Basin, we will eat lunch and enjoy great views of Lake Mead NRA’s desert mountains. We will also participate in an environmental education lab led by University of Nevada, Las Vegas Public Lands Institute, a partner of the National Park Service, to learn about how Forever Earth helps engage kids about invasive species, water quality, and other park issues.

Cost: $50
Time: 9:00am–4:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: One Hour Each Way (Two Hours Total)
Accessibility: Travel will be by motorcoach; trails have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sunscreen, Layered Warm Clothes, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 23

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7. Desert-Mountain Juxtaposition: Desert National Wildlife Refuge and Spring Mountains National Recreation Area
Against the boundaries of a city known for wild living, is the largest national wildlife refuge in the continental US.  This vast wildlife refuge, over 1.6 million acres, contains over 6 major mountain ranges rising to an elevation of almost 10,000 feet and the largest intact block of desert bighorn sheep habitat in the Southwest.  The area has been utilized by people for thousands of years and has major archaeological and historical significance.

Spring Mountains National Recreation Area provides a forested, spring-fed oasis. The mountains offer a haven for wildlife, a cool retreat for visitors to get away, and a vital watershed that feeds numerous springs. Charleston Peak is the crown jewel of the mountain range. Rising to 11,918 feet, it is the only peak in southern Nevada above timberline and is sacred to the Southern Paiute people.

Our excursion will begin at Corn Creek, an oasis for birds, wildlife and people.  Visitor Services Manager, Angelina Yost will give us an overview of the interpretive plans for the refuge. We will explore the trail system with Archaeologist Heidi Roberts and Biologist Laurie Simons and Natural Resources Officer, Amy Nichols, will talk about the challenges of having a National Recreation Area on a sky island.

Kyle Canyon is where a major recreation complex is being developed.  There we will learn about the USFS interpretive plan, which forms the foundation upon which a new, state of the art visitor center.  We will hear about facilities that will be environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable so they can effectively engage people in enjoying and caring for the Spring Mountains.

Cost: $45
Time 8:00am–5:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: 45 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Travel will be by motor coach; trails have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 40

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8. Museums Day: Las Vegas Natural History Museum, Old Mormon Fort State Park, and Nevada State Museum
Join us as we explore various museums in the Las Vegas area.

First we will visit the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, where we will meet Pam Thomas, education director. Pam will take us on a special visit to the Treasures of Egypt Gallery, a museum highlight. Here visitors explore how archeologists unearthed some of Egypt’s most renowned treasures, including the Tomb of Tutankhamun. The exhibit includes artifact recreations of the Golden Throne, chariots, the Golden Shrine, and outer sarcophagus. You will then have time to explore the rest of the museum on your own.

At our next stop, The Old Mormon Fort, interpretive ranger Don Bolton will describe to us how Las Vegas came into existence through faith, hope, determination, and the ability to overcome adversity. Las Vegas, Spanish for “the meadows,” once was an oasis with free-flowing water. In 1855, a group of 29 Mormon missionaries built a small adobe fort near a creek and irrigated their crops. Today Nevada State Parks manages the site and exhibits illustrate each of the different eras in the fort’s history.

Our final stop of the day will be the new location of the Nevada State Museum (pictured above). The museum is so new that it will not be open to the public when we visit, but what a behind-the-scenes story it will tell. We will learn from museum staff how the project went from interpretive plan to completion and what it is like to move a huge collection from one location to another.

Cost: $50
Time: 8:45am–3:30pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: 30 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Indoor facilities fully accessible; trails have uneven, dirt surfaces and may be rocky
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 45

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9. Stories on Stone: Sloan Canyon Petroglyph Site
Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area’s 75 square miles provide peace and solitude for those who visit the unique scenic and geologic features and extraordinary cultural resources. Surroundings vary from lowland dry lake beds to volcanic rock peaks reaching more than 5,000 feet.

The centerpiece of the area, though, is the Sloan Canyon Petroglyph Site, which Archeologists believe has been in use for over 2,000 years. With more than 300 rock art panels and 1,700 individual design elements created by native cultures from the Archaic to historic eras, this is one of the most significant cultural resources in southern Nevada.

The rock art panels are distributed over a distance of about one mile. We will visit this magnificent mile with archeologist Mark Boatwright and NCA manager Robbie McAboy as we explore the theories for the abundance of petroglyphs in this location. Our transportation will be four-wheel drive due to the remoteness of the site, so be prepared for the jostle associated with rough roads. We will also hike a half-mile trail to get to Petroglyph Canyon, where we will see a further concentration of ancient rock art panels.

Cost: $70
Time: 9:00am–2:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: 45 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Roads are rough and trails have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 15

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10. The Heart of Las Vegas: The Springs Preserve
Gazing at Las Vegas’s desert landscape, it’s hard to imagine that the area was once home to natural springs and lush meadows. Las Vegas is Spanish, translating to “the meadows.”

The Springs Preserve, a 180-acre cultural and historic attraction, is now on the site of those springs, which dried up in 1962. Their far-reaching mission aims to teach people about Vegas’s past as well as getting them to think about a more sustainable future. The preserve features museums, galleries, outdoor concerts and events, colorful botanical gardens, and an interpretive trail system. Education programs supervisor Aaron Micallef will lead staff from around the preserve to talk to our group about how staff plans programming to meet such an expansive mission.

Education about the past is one key component and we will expand our knowledge at the Origen Experience. We will learn about early inhabitants who made the springs their home and see interactive exhibits that explore the geological history of the Mojave Desert and the formation of the valley and the springs.

We will also learn about the myriad of wildlife that call the desert home with an exhibit of live animals including Gila monsters, lizards, snakes, desert cottontails, spiders, and more.

Education about conservation and preparing for the future is another aspect of the site and that is accomplished in the Desert Living Center. Here we will see how the exhibits and architecture demonstrate the benefits of recycling, conservation, and alternative energy with a behind-the-scenes tour of their LEED Platinum-certified facility.

Cost: $45
Time: 9:15am–3:45pm
Meals Included: Lunch at On-Site Café
Travel Time: 20 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Travel will be by motorcoach; trails may have uneven surfaces and are not wheelchair accessible.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sunscreen, Layered Warm Clothes, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 45

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11. 2010 Service Trip: Burrowing Owl Habitat Enhancement, Floyd Lamb Park
Become energized with a wildlife restoration project that enhances the habitat of the western burrowing owl, Athene cunicularia hypugaea, in the heart of urban Las Vegas.

Floyd Lamb Park owned by the city of Las Vegas is located at the north end of the Las Vegas urban area, and these owls are a western bird of conservation concern. Come out to the Mojave Desert, learn about the habitat loss and destruction of burrows due to human disturbance and land conversions. The Nevada Bird Conservation Plan classifies the burrowing owl as a priority bird species and recommends several actions to protect and maintain burrow habitats, including mitigating for loss of owl nest sites by constructing artificial burrows.

We’ll install and create artificial burrows in strategic locations to maximize the number of breeding owl pairs in the park, and add rock features where necessary. We’ll also learn how to monitor nests and take a population inventory using owlet aging charts to age resident pairs. We’ll also work on trail enhancements to complement burrowing owl habitats.

Cost: $45
Time: 8:30am–5:00pm
Meals Included: Box Lunch
Travel Time: 30 Minutes Each Way
Accessibility: Travel will be by motorcoach; trails and work area have uneven surfaces.
Suggested Gear: Hat, Sunglasses, Sun Screen, Water, Warm Clothes In Layers, Sturdy Shoes, Camera
Maximum Number of Participants: 50

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12. Keeping that Cutting Edge: Trainers Sharing with Trainers
Certified Interpretive Trainers:  If you’re not going on an off-site session, consider attending this workshop tailored just for you. We are offering this special “inside off-site” on Friday as an experiment, in the hope that it will meet participants’ needs. (In past years we offered a similar session as a pre-workshop, but trainers suggested it might work better as an option during the off-site day).

This workshop provides interpretive trainers a venue for sharing ideas and discussing best practices, methods, and techniques used in the Certified Interpretive Guide course. Communication and sharing information are critical to staying current, expanding your training repertoire, and promoting the profession.

This is the best opportunity for new trainers to garner some of those “tried and true methods” and for more experienced folks to sharpen skills and maintain that fine edge that keeps us at the forefront of our profession. This session is open to all Certified Interpretive Guide instructors and those who have taken CIT training but have not yet finished their certification.

Our three facilitators bring solid experience from diverse backgrounds, having taught CIG for state and federal agencies and zoos, and as a semester-long college course. We plan to demonstrate some of our best practices, and hope participants will bring ideas to share. Expect a fast-paced day of discussion, activities, games, and demonstrations. Take home inspiration, recharged passion, and a CD of interpretive training outlines and lesson plans.

Cost: $25
Time: 8:00am–5:00pm
Meals: On your own.
Instructors: Kelly Farrell (CHI, CIT), Sarah Keating (CHI, CIT), and Patrick Barry (CIG, CIT)
Suggested Gear: Note-Taking Materials, Camera, Comfortable Clothes for Moving Around
Maximum Number of Participants: 30

 

Preworkshop sessions are one- or two-day, topic-based workshops designed for those who would like in-depth training in subjects related to interpretation. The Interpreters Road Show and some preworkshop training sessions take place over two days (November 15-16). All others take place Tuesday, November 16. There is a fee (lunch included) above regular workshop registration to cover the cost of these optional preworkshop sessions.

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TWO-DAY PREWORKSHOPS
November 15-16, 2010

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1. “Three of a Kind”: Partnerships, Sustainability & Tourism in an Interpretive World
We know that interpretation and tourism are inextricably linked, but how do we create and maintain beneficial and long-term partnerships between our organizations and businesses? Can promoting stewardship and environmental sustainability through interpretation create a win-win for marketing agencies such as convention and visitors bureaus as well as program sites?

By bringing together leaders from for-profit and non-profit organizations as well as local state and federal agencies, we will together explore the challenges and opportunities for creating synergistic partnerships around interpretive sites and programs. In addition to hearing about specific case studies, participants will have the opportunity to see first hand successful partnerships in the Las Vegas area.

Instructors: Deb Friedel, Director of Sustainability, Delaware North Companies, and Cris Collier, President, Great Bend Convention & Visitors Bureau
Cost: $200
Maximum Number of Participants: 30

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2. Podcasting for Interpreters
Interpretive media has seen tremendous growth with the advent of easy-to-use digital technology and podcasting has seen some of the fastest growth. Podcasting is a multimedia solution to enhancing blogs and providing original interpretive audio and video content. In this workshop, participants will learn the basics of script writing, capturing and editing audio, using music, and creating RSS feeds to distribute podcasts. The bulk of the class will be hands-on. Participants will be given assignments to collect the sounds of Las Vegas and edit them into a podcast using the tools provided.

Also, students must bring a laptop. If they have access to a digital audio recorder, they should bring it and the instructors will bring extra equipment as well. Instructors will provide links to editing software (Audacity and Levelator) which will need to be downloaded to students’ computers prior to attending the class.

Instructors: Dominic Cardea, Northeast Regional Office,
National Park Service; Craig Glassner, Golden Gate National Recreation Area; Judy Lively, Olympic National Park; Michael Liang, North Cascades National Park
Cost: $200
Maximum Number of Participants: 20

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3. Climate Change Myths and Truths: Interpreting the Science in a Climate of Controversy
Climate change is a challenging topic for interpreters. It involves complex science on a global scale (it’s even more complex at the local scale), is controversial, and carries abundant misconceptions. To help participants meet these challenges, this session will provide a basic foundation for interpreting climate change. We will draw upon NASA’s extensive climate research to help address common misconceptions. Methodology for interpreting controversial subjects will be discussed, and climate change interpretive products and techniques from the NASA-NPS-USFWS partnership will be featured (eg., exhibits, pod-casts, Jr. Ranger programming). Abundant interpretive and scientific resources will be provided for participants to draft a plan for interpreting climate change at their own site.

Instructors: John Morris, NPS, AK Interpretive Training and Media Specialist; Ruth Paglierani, UC Berkeley; Sandy Spakoff, USFWS, National Conservation Training Center, Training and Education Specialist; Anita Davis, Sigma Space at NASA, Landsat Education and Outreach Coordinator; NASA scientist TBD
Cost: $225
Maximum Number of Participants:50

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4. Interpreters Road Show 2010
NAI’s Nature Center Directors and Administrators Section is hitting the trail in Nevada and stopping at a wonderful selection of private, non-profit, county, state, and federal interpretive facilities. During this year’s Road Show, we will visit the Springs Preserve, Wetlands Nature Preserve, Spring Mountain Ranch State Park, and Red Rock Canyon. This professional development opportunity will include time to go behind the scenes at each of these locations and talk with staff to learn how they manage volunteers, programs, building and facility development, master planning, funding development, exhibits, and much more. In addition, participants will have the time to discuss “hot topics” selected by themselves during the group roundtable discussion. This Road Show will enable the participants to network and learn from their fellow NAI interpreters and administrators.

This opportunity is open to all interpreters and provides a unique look at a variety of interpretive properties. All transportation, park fees, and some meals are included in this trip. There will be no off-site, overnight lodging during this trip. Participants should make sure they reserve lodging for Monday night at their choice for the NAI National Workshop.

Trip Leader: Amy Roell
Cost: $ 225
Maximum Number of Participants: 30

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ONE-DAY PREWORKSHOPS
November 16, 2010

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5. Interpreting American Indian Traditions in the 21st Century
Learn how to awaken awareness in your audiences with singer, songwriter, storyteller, poet, and bridge-builder Jack Gladstone. Jack has delivered hundreds of presentations highlighting various aspects of American Indian culture including, mytho-poetic imagery in Native story and song, cultural changes on the Northern Plains, treaty talk, the re-birthing of the “talking circle,” and Indian Education for all in Montana. In 1985, Jack co-founded and has since been a presenter for Glacier National Park’s “Native Speaks” lecture series.

Instructor: Jack Gladstone
Cost: $150
Maximum Number of Participants: 50

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6. Coaching for Professional Excellence
In 2009, over 250 interpreters earned credentials as Local Registered Coaches for the new Interpretation and Education Distance Learning Platform created by the National Park Service and Indiana University’s Eppley Institute. Building off the success of the new coaching network, this preworkshop session will creatively use joint panel discussions, break-out sessions, individualized assignments, and personalized feedback to fulfill three distinct goals: to serve as a refresher for registered coaches (fulfills yearly coaching credential requirement), to introduce interested supervisors and experienced interpreters to the purpose and format of the coaching network, and to provide new strategies for those interested in honing their coaching skills.

Instructors: Katie Bliss, Training Specialist, Mather Training Center; Tess Shatzer, Park Ranger, Regional Lead Coach; Dr. Elizabeth Barrie; Nancy Hadlock
Cost: $145
Maximum Number of Participants: 20

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7. Graphic Design Basics for Heritage Interpreters (with the authors of Interpretation By Design)
This workshop is designed for interpreters who have little or no training in graphic design but find themselves responsible for creating non-personal media.

Interpreters use exhibits, brochures, signs, websites, site publications, and other visual media to tell their stories. This session focuses on using basic principles of both graphic design and interpretation in non-personal media. By the end of the workshop, you should have a good understanding of how to make decisions about type, color, and composition, as well as why an interpretive approach may be more effective for communicating with your audience.

Instructors: Shea Lewis and Paul Caputo
Cost: $150
Maximum Number of Participants: 30

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8. Bug Blitz
Because insects and arachnids are among the most fascinating and diverse group of animals on Earth, they are a magnet for audiences in parks, nature centers, and zoos. From ants to tarantulas to zebra swallowtails, arthropods provide interpreters with an almost overwhelming source of opportunities. This workshop is designed for interpreters with beginning-to-moderate knowledge of entomology. Highlights include an insect and arachnid order overview, hands-on identification, and sampling activities. Also included are crafts, programs, tools, and interpretive games that this presenter has used during her 15-year career as a professional entomologist, interpreter, and author of Arkansas Butterflies and Moths (NAI media award winner 2007).

Instructors: Lori A. Spencer, CHI, CIG
Cost: $150
Maximum Number of Participants: 20

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9. Living History Road Show
In this time of uncertainty, all interpreters want to know what we can do to keep our sites viable. Wouldn’t it be nice to travel to an “interpretive oasis” and not be afraid to look outside-the-box for new ideas.

Participants will take a trip to one of Las Vegas’ most well-known living history sites (TDB) and receive a tour of the facility by the site’s staff. The tour will include current facilities, programming, administration, maintenance, master planning, exhibits, and other behind-the-scenes activities. Discussion with the site staff will include current challenges and opportunities.

Come and learn some “fabulous” new (or old) approaches to doing living history and running a cultural interpretation site.

Instructors: TBD
Cost: $145
Maximum Number of Participants: 25

 

The exhibit hall will highlight more than 100 of the most innovative and dynamic interpretive companies and organizations in North America. Interpretive professionals will be on hand to discuss the latest interactive exhibit, sign project, or museum makeover. Exhibitors will be eager to answer questions and connect you with the information you need.

Exhibitors, click here to find out more and reserve your booth today!

Exhibitors Include:
The 106 Group
Acorn Naturalists
American Park Network
Association of Partners for Public Lands
Best Exhibits, Inc
Big Muddy Workshop
BookSmart
Budd Wentz Productions
Center for Science Teaching & Learning
Condit Exhibits
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Eastern National
Environment for the Americas
Erica Fielder Studio
Fulcrum Publishing
Glyphguy Backpacks
GWWO Inc, Architects
Interpretive Graphics
iZone
Jane Rohling Communication Arts
KC Publications
The Kubala Washatko Architects
NAI Association Store
NAI National Workshop – 2011
NAI Interpretive Media Section
NAI Region 4
NAI Region 10
National Park Service
National Park Service-Fire & Aviation
National Park Service/Kansas Parks
Nature Watch
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
North Shore Productions
Outdoor Educators Insurance
Rosene Creative
Solid Terrain Modeling
Split Rock Studios
Taylor Studios, Inc.
Tour-Mate Systems
US Fish & Wildlife Service – National Conservation Training Center
USFWS National Conservation Training Center – Let’s Go Outside Program
US Forest Service
US Media
VarroBook
Wildware