Browse the complete text content of the tip sheet packets that are used in Partnerships workshops by clicking on the titles below. You may need to download and install Adobe Acrobat in order to view the tip sheets. All of these documents are printable. To request hard copies or Spanish translations, call (212) 360-8180.
Building Alliances with Elected Officials
Take the fear out of partnering with elected officials: with tips on getting your voice heard, whom to call for what, and the basics of relationship-building.
Building Business Partnerships
Learn how to make friends with your local merchants: includes ideas for co-sponsorship, tips on approaching businesses, and sample letters.
Building an Effective Community Campaign
Take your issue to a larger audience: create coalitions, develop a press strategy, build an email listserve.
Making Your Park Safer
Reach the “tipping point” in achieving park safety with these tips on vigilance, working with the police, and small actions that make a big impact.
Planning Successful Events
Soup to nuts on successful programming in your park: including press strategies, partnering with Parks, and event planning timetables.
Fundraising Advice for Park Groups
Tips on raising money: from individuals, businesses, elected officials, and private foundations. Sample fundraising plans, grant proposals, and a list of grants for parks groups.
Grantwriting 101
Learn what’s entailed in writing a detailed proposal to apply for funds: including the major sections of a standard proposal and the content expected for each.
Fostering Leadership Skills for Community Groups
Many community groups evolve from the efforts of a single individual, and while the energy and drive required to start a group are important leadership skills, they are not all that’s required. What does it take to be a good leader? How can your group identify the right person? The enclosed tip sheets address key leadership qualities and ways to develop both current and future leaders.
Working With Parks Maintenance & Operations
Learn how the agency is structured, how it measures its success, and tips for helpful partnerships with your local Parkies.
Making Your Voice Heard: Using the Media to Communicate
Get your message out with these strategies for working with print and broadcast media: including sample press releases and contact information for local press outlets in the five boroughs.
Effective Outreach & Publications
Ideas for building your group, from newsletters to bulletin boards to membership brochures.
Establishing a Friends of the Park Group
First steps in creating a park stewardship group: including tips on outreach, running meetings, delegating & putting on events.
Formalizing the Structure of Your Group
Develop your group even further by drafting by-laws, creating a board of directors, or incorporating with the State. Includes sample by-laws and a step-by-step guide to becoming a tax-exempt non-profit.
Using Technology to Communicate Effectively
Learn to use low-cost and free communication technologies to recruit, educate, and empower more individuals, more quickly than ever before.
For a park to truly play its role—to welcome everyone in the community—parks programming and activities have to appeal and be relevant to people who live in the neighborhood. New York City's parks are a testament to its extraordinary diversity: 40 percent of the city's residents are foreign-born. Parks are also an entry point for immigrants to participate in civic life. For parks groups looking to make a difference in their communities, one question stands out: How ready is your parks group to reach out and engage immigrants?
This guide, prepared by Partnerships for Parks, aims to inspire and inform you with successful outreach tips and strategies used by organizations working with diverse groups of immigrants, the Immigrants & Parks Collaborative.
© City Parks Foundation
