National urban parks expert Tupper Thomas will speak about the critical role citizens can play to ensure the revitalization, protection, and well-being of their parks and open spaces.

She will draw from her vast experience on the positive impact and benefits of alliances and public-private partnerships. Tupper Thomas is the current Executive Director of New Yorkers for Parks. For 30 years Tupper served as Administrator of Brooklyn’s Prospect Park and was the founding president of The Prospect Park Alliance, formed in 1987 in partnership with the City of New York to revive, restore, and preserve the park. Tupper was a founding board member and co-chair of the City Parks Alliance, the leading independent national organization that advocates for urban parks. Community outreach and participation were a centerpiece of Thomas’s work and in the mid-1990s, she formed the Alliance’s Community Committee, comprised of more than 50 local organizations, community boards and elected officials that continues to meet monthly. This Community Committee has served as a model for other public-private park organizations across the country. Tupper has received numerous awards and has been a guest speaker for parks groups throughout the United States and abroad. She has a Master’s degree in Urban Planning from Pratt Institute and a BA from Goucher College.

~FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC~

SPONSORED BY PARKS FOR ALL, A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WORKING TO PROMOTE THE CREATION, BEAUTIFICATION, PROTECTION, AND USE OF PUBLIC PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS, AND OPEN SPACES IN ALL NEW ORLEANS NEIGHBORHOODS. Moderated by Lex Kelso, Ph.D.