COME ALIVE OUTSIDE;
Activating Your Business to Drive Community Health Tus, his next question, “How do we fix it?” Paluch is the executive director of Come Alive Outside, a 501(c)(3) non- profit organization. Teir mission is to inspire collaborative community systems that create awareness…encourage people to enjoy the outdoors…and enjoy the full benefits of outdoor space. Tey partner with the landscape and horticulture industry to create the awareness, intention and opportunity for people to live healthier lives outside.
Editor’s Note: Tis article excerpts the presentation by the same name by Andy Paluch, Executive Director of Come Alive Outside during TPI’s 2017 International Education Conference & Field Day. Kurt Vanclief of Willowlee Sod joined in that presentation and was a panel member during the “Community Engagement & Your Farm” session. Videos of both sessions are available for viewing through TPI’s Turfgrass Education Center on the TPI website:
www.TurfGrassSod.org.
On average, children in North American spend less than one hour per week outdoors, but get more than seven hours of screen time per day! Tis shift toward indoor inactive lifestyles is having a profound impact on the health of our communities, and the Green Industry is perfectly positioned to lead the charge in getting people back outside, living healthier lives.
Paluch posed the question, “Do you have more scars on your knees than your kids do? A University of Michigan study reported that from 1980 to 2002, 6 to 17 year olds spent half as much time outside as those in that age group did previously. And the way they spend time outside now is so structured.
Te average American home has three or more TVs, plus smart phones and laptops. Video game revenue is up. Te hours of media exposure per day for 8 to 18 year olds exceeds 12 hours. Studies have shown that media affects the same function area of the brain as cocaine. We have created a generation of technology addicts. Your phone becomes part of your body. With the introduction of virtual reality, over the next five years, media will be even more integrated into our lives.”
Paluch reported, “To keep people healthy rather than fix them when they’re sick, hospitals are starting to write prescriptions to parks. One in ten adults suffers from depression and anxiety. Tat’s admitted. Te actual total may be closer to two in ten.”
He urged turfgrass sod producers to connect their companies with those others looking at getting kids outdoors and active. “Te green industry has a remarkable talent for getting stuff done,” Paluch said. “It’s a rare and special thing. At the same time, the green industry has an image problem. It’s time to put the industry in a different position in the community and for your company to play a different role with the customers you serve. You need to become a trusted advisor for your industry in your community.”
Paluch detailed one of the programs Come Alive Outside coordinates and introduced the TPI member partnering in it, Kurt Vanclief, President of Willowlee Sod, LTD in Ameliasburg, Ontario, Canada. For the past five years, Vanclief has teamed with Scott Wentworth, President of Wentworth Landscapes, to help their community remember the lost art of unstructured play by laying sod on Main Street in Picton, Ontario, and creating a temporary park on Canada Day.
Vanclief reported the program is the “Green Street Challenge” in Ontario. He said, “We install 5,000 to 10,000 square feet of sod in the center of town to create a temporary park for a day. Te city shuts down the street for a day of unstructured play. People will be walking down the street, drinking coffee and watching us roll out the sod. Once it’s installed, people show up to engage with it. Kids seem to swarm to it. It grabs attention and gets people out on the grass to make memories with their families.
It’s a networking event that takes minimal effort on our part. We never put the benefits of turf out in front of them. We don’t even post a sign with our company name. It allows use to do good in an anonymous way. If we went out promoting the product, the concept would not be welcome. We do receive excellent media coverage before and after the event that ties our company name to it. Tat’s what gains recognition in the community."
Andy Paluch onstage. 42
To learn more about these programs visit the website:
www.comealiveoutside.com. Contact Andy at:
andy@comealiveoutside.com.
TPI Turf News May/June 2017
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
