Nature Center Issues & Solutions:
A roundtable of ideas & answers
November 2021
An informative and collaborative roundtable discussion about issues, trends, and problem-solving at nature and visitor centers.
A roundtable of ideas & answers
November 2021
An informative and collaborative roundtable discussion about issues, trends, and problem-solving at nature and visitor centers.
Issue 1: Volunteer Management Issues- How to manage volunteers, especially “difficult” volunteers
● Start by interviewing everyone and only take those that fit
○ Can they do animal care, gardening, events, etc - If not personable, put them behind the scenes.
○ Use job descriptions to help place volunteers
● Do background checks and look for red flags
● Make use of a volunteer coordinator to interview volunteers
● Hold monthly volunteer gathering to allow volunteers to socialize with each other and give an
update on things happening at the facility. This stopped some volunteers from dropping by the
office to chat!
● Another option is a “Workshop Wednesday” where volunteers get together to work on a project.
● Ensure volunteers receive good training
○ Great Parks of Hamilton County (Cincinnati, Ohio) has online training developed in house as well
as child protection training for those working with youth.
○ Master Naturalist Programs provide a great resource for training
● Onboarding volunteers quarterly or not necessarily all the time- Can help with training and
staff time. Smaller agencies onboard as volunteers are interested because they are really in need
of assistance.
● Keep things professional- have a good website, newsletter, business cards, etc.
● For events, utilize college and high school students that need service hours.
● Volunteers with companies can often lead to grants and donors. Great way to grow your “Friends”
programs.
● Firing volunteers that prove difficult can be done. Treat the volunteers like staff and provide
similar discipline-type procedures. If necessary, elevate to a higher level to manage the
situation.
● Some examples of volunteer management software:
○ Volgistics
○ Better Impact
○ Rec Desk
○ Galaxy Digital
○ Samaritan
○ Volunteer.gov
Issue 2: Budget & Friends
● Look at businesses for volunteers as well as grants and sponsorships
○ Arkansas parks taps Walmart for volunteers and grants
○ Toyota provides grants and sponsorships
○ Local businesses can also provide support although sometimes they have less money to give
● Friends group
○ Need to determine the organization policy for naming rights or how to recognize donations
○ Friends group can be a good pass-through for donations without the organization red tape
○ Donations of services might be easier to accept than goods
■ Example was a mural where a local art organization provided paint as well as the artists to
complete the project
● Consider partnering with local non-profit organizations to complete projects
● Partner with county commissioner or “friends in high places” to get more buy-in and increase your
budget; look at focusing on sustainability and other hot topic projects to get funding; support the
conservation initiatives they have in mind
● Budget growth like increase property tax revenue means more responsibilities (more users) and
therefore need more money in the budget
● Great revenue builder- summer camp!
● Start by interviewing everyone and only take those that fit
○ Can they do animal care, gardening, events, etc - If not personable, put them behind the scenes.
○ Use job descriptions to help place volunteers
● Do background checks and look for red flags
● Make use of a volunteer coordinator to interview volunteers
● Hold monthly volunteer gathering to allow volunteers to socialize with each other and give an
update on things happening at the facility. This stopped some volunteers from dropping by the
office to chat!
● Another option is a “Workshop Wednesday” where volunteers get together to work on a project.
● Ensure volunteers receive good training
○ Great Parks of Hamilton County (Cincinnati, Ohio) has online training developed in house as well
as child protection training for those working with youth.
○ Master Naturalist Programs provide a great resource for training
● Onboarding volunteers quarterly or not necessarily all the time- Can help with training and
staff time. Smaller agencies onboard as volunteers are interested because they are really in need
of assistance.
● Keep things professional- have a good website, newsletter, business cards, etc.
● For events, utilize college and high school students that need service hours.
● Volunteers with companies can often lead to grants and donors. Great way to grow your “Friends”
programs.
● Firing volunteers that prove difficult can be done. Treat the volunteers like staff and provide
similar discipline-type procedures. If necessary, elevate to a higher level to manage the
situation.
● Some examples of volunteer management software:
○ Volgistics
○ Better Impact
○ Rec Desk
○ Galaxy Digital
○ Samaritan
○ Volunteer.gov
Issue 2: Budget & Friends
● Look at businesses for volunteers as well as grants and sponsorships
○ Arkansas parks taps Walmart for volunteers and grants
○ Toyota provides grants and sponsorships
○ Local businesses can also provide support although sometimes they have less money to give
● Friends group
○ Need to determine the organization policy for naming rights or how to recognize donations
○ Friends group can be a good pass-through for donations without the organization red tape
○ Donations of services might be easier to accept than goods
■ Example was a mural where a local art organization provided paint as well as the artists to
complete the project
● Consider partnering with local non-profit organizations to complete projects
● Partner with county commissioner or “friends in high places” to get more buy-in and increase your
budget; look at focusing on sustainability and other hot topic projects to get funding; support the
conservation initiatives they have in mind
● Budget growth like increase property tax revenue means more responsibilities (more users) and
therefore need more money in the budget
● Great revenue builder- summer camp!