GovLove - A Podcast About Local Government

Three guests joined the podcast for a very special session of GovLove and Open Space Radio. Ali Rhodes is the Parks and Recreation Director for the City of Boulder, Colorado, Bernita Reese is the Recreation and Parks Director for the City of Columbus, Ohio, and Michele White is a Senior Program Manager for the National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA). They joined to talk about environmental resilience and sustainability strategies in the parks and recreation sector. Ali and Bernita shared the work they have done in their organizations to mitigate and manage the impacts of climate change, as well as in collaborating with other departments in their cities. Michele talked about NRPA's recent Sustainability in Practice program focused on helping organizations take the next step in environmental resilience.

This episode was produced in partnership with NRPA's Open Space Radio Podcast and recorded live at the 2024 NRPA Conference in Atlanta, GA.

Hosts: Ben Kittelson and Cort Jones

Two guests joined the podcast to share their generational perspective on local government. Sam Badger is the City Manager's Office Marvin Andrews Fellow at City of Scottsdale, Arizona and Decker Ploehn is the City Administrator for the City of Bettendorf, Iowa. They each shared their career path, talked about the importance of relationships, and asked each other questions to gain knowledge from the others perspective.

Host: Lauren Palmer

Two guests joined the podcast to talk about starting their careers in public service. Olivia Perfetti is the Municipal Engagement Manager for Allegheny County Conservation District and Lily Neilsen is an Environmental Justice Intern for a non-profit, New Sun Rising. They both attended, or are attending, Carnegie Mellon University for their Master's in Public Policy program and were part of a fellowship program to connect students to local government. They discussed what brought them to public service, what they have learned in their roles so far, and what they are looking for from their employers.

This episode was recorded at the 2024 ICMA Conference in Pittsburgh, PA.

Host: Meredith Reynolds

Taylor Wegrzyn, Director of Economic and Community Development at the City of North Chicago, Illinois and Siraj Asfahani, Vice President at The Lakota Group joined to podcast to discuss the City of North Chicago's award-winning Comprehensive Plan. They discussed the need for more frequent revisions of a comprehensive plan and the unique opportunities of coordinating with the federal government. They also discussed the robust community outreach and resident engagement that informed the development of the plan.

This episode was recorded at the American Planning Association – Illinois Chapter Annual Conference.

Host: Dan Bolin and Andy Cross

Kara Silbernagel, Deputy County Manager for Pitkin County, Colorado joined the podcast to discuss climate action planning. She talked about how the County's work is impacted by Federal land, emergency management, and affordability. She shared the importance of engagement in climate action planning and discussed the elements of the County's plan, especially in building resilience.

This episode was recorded at the 2024 ICMA Conference in Pittsburgh, PA.

Host: Ben Kittelson