JACKSON, WY— Going outside is good for your health.
That’s what members of both Teton County’s local healthcare community and national healthcare leaders will come together to prove during this year’s SHIFT. And SHIFT organizers are excited for the chance for the local and national healthcare professionals to interact and learn from each other.
One such opportunity is a guided walk of a “Public Lands, Public Health Exhibition Trail” that will take place on the opening day of SHIFT, Tuesday, October 16, at 10 a.m. Land managers from various agencies and healthcare professionals who are interested in the benefits of time spent in nature are invited to attend.
SHIFT organizers are working with Jodie Pond, Teton County Health Department Director, and Linda Merigliano, Bridger Teton National Forest Recreation Manager, to create an exhibition trail that runs from May Park to the top of Nelson Knoll.
The walk will proceed from the municipal May Park to the top of Nelson Knoll on Bridger Teton National Forest land. Along the way, it will:
- Showcase attributes of a successful public lands/public health trail model
- Identify opportunities to expand public lands/public health trail collaborations into replicable models for communities nationwide
- Provide the federal land managers who will be meeting at SHIFT ideas and opportunities for integrating optimal trail attributes into their work
- This includes the USFS Region 4 Planning meeting, which will take place during SHIFT, as well as a Public Land Manager’s Meeting that will be held on Thursday, Oct. 18, at 2 p.m.
Farjana Islam will lead the walk. Islam is a 2018 participant in SHIFT’s Emerging Leaders Program and the Health and Nature Navigator Program Coordinator for the USDA Forest Service. She is developing a pilot program with the United States Forest Service to connect national forests with health care providers in communities around the country.
The first such initiative, a collaborative effort between Barton Health and the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, promotes the delivery of therapeutic, nature-based experiences on National Forest System lands that benefit the medical patient community of Lake Tahoe, California. The initiative will be featured as one of this year’s SHIFT Award Official Selections.
A number of other SHIFT Award Official Selections will also be included in the exhibition trail, including the Blue Sky Parkway Foundation, whose Kids in Parks program partners with land management agencies across the country to convert existing trails into “TRACK Trails” (TRACK: Trails, Recreation Adventures, and Connections for Kids).
Blue Sky Parkway Foundation has created signage for the demonstration trail specific to Nelson Knoll.
“Around the country, natural allies in outdoor recreation, conservation, land management and health care are collaborating to advance and promote the health benefits of time outside,” said Christian Beckwith, SHIFT’s Director. “When we begin to look at nature as a public health resource, we see the full value it brings to society.”
“We’re excited to connect health care leaders in our community with others from around the country at this year’s SHIFT.”
SHIFT is offering Buckrail readers 30% off festival tickets. To claim yours, visit the ticket site, click the green ticket icon, and enter promo code BUCKRAIL.
