DISCLAIMER: Content on this page is subject to change during these planning stages.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11th
Pre-Conference Sessions:
Golf Tournament
12:00pm - 6:00pm
Visit the Events & Activities page for more information.
HIGH FIVE® Sport
1:00pm - 4:30pm
This 3-1/2 hour workshop is designed for the competitive coach in a club/organization. Aligned with the Fundamentals and Learn to Train stages of Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD), HIGH FIVE® Sport focuses on the social, emotional, and cognitive development and wellbeing of athletes. The training is based in research and has been designed to help coaches deal with top coaching dilemmas such as communicating with parents, keeping the child's interest, ensuring fair play and building an emotionally safe environment.
At the completion of this workshop, learners will be able to:
- Identify cognitive, emotional and cognitive development traits of children 6 to 12
- Determine a coach's impact on a child's experience
- Communicate effectively with children and their parents
- Identify strategies to reduce competiton pressure
Target Audience: Any coach, sport leader, or volunteer providing direct leadership to children in middle childhood (ages 6 to 12).
Presenter: Colin Gillis, Youth Leadership Program Coordinator,
Sport Nova Scotia
Red Cross Aquatic Program Administration Course Overview
1:00pm - 4:00pm
This session is an overview of a 3-day “Certified Aquatic Professional” course. This Canadian Red Cross course will take your aquatic management skills to a new level. With the increasing demands from your patrons and regulatory sectors, it is important that the aquatic manager of today has a clear understanding of current situations and trends. We will use group work, role play and brainstorming to raise your awareness of your role in the facility. Keeping your community informed plays a key role in meeting your vision and offering programs with set standards and ensuring successful outcomes to meet community needs. During this course, we will focus on key components of an excellent aquatic program administrator: people, self, organization, customers and tasks.
Presenter: Aileen Nauss, Water Safety Technical Associate, Canadian Red Cross
Engaging Youth in Recreation
1:00pm - 4:00pm
Youth engagement is emerging as a viable strategy for community renewal. This 3 hour workshop is designed to your community, agency or organization better understand the potential of youth engagement. You will explore the potential benefits, understand how youth engagement can offer leverage to address some community challenges and learn some principle-based strategies. A current video will share what adults across Nova Scotia are learning about what works in engaging young people.
Presenter: Tonya Comeau, Youth Strategy Specialist, Department of Community Services
Trade Show Opening
7:30pm - 8:30pm
Visit the Exhibitors page for more information.
Delegate & Exhibitor Reception
9:00pm
Visit the Events & Activities page for more information.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12th
Conference Opennig and Keynote with LEO ARTALEJO
Chief Storyteller & Senior Counsel, MT&L Public Relations
9:30am - 10:30am
What’s Your Story? Inspiring and connecting with the people who matter most.
Every one of us is living and telling our own stories. Media tools today let us tweet and text and type, so that we're broadcasting our story as we live it. But what should we be saying? And why should others care? This keynote session will focus on the power of storytelling and present a framework that you can use to tell your organization's story in a clear and compelling way, no matter what communications platform you use.
For a bio on Leo check out the Conference Home Page!
Wednesday Breakout Sessions - 1st Block
11:00am - 12:00pm
Active Transportation: Preaching to the UNconverted
Why don’t more people walk and bike? If our goal is to increase the number of folks actively transporting themselves we need to understand the inhibitors of AT habits. We do a good job talking about AT to people who are already onboard, but what about folks who just don’t give a darn or are downright hostile to AT. Gord will examine the environments that create the perceptions about AT, and look at the value systems that create the habits, behaviors, and change that that we hope to realize. Hopefully, at the end of this we’ll have a better sense of how to make the argument for AT and find the common threads that will win the day.
Presenter: Gordon Tate, Active Living/Transportation Coordinator, Municipality of Chester
Connecting Business & Recreation
SUBWAY franchisee Mike will speak on how SUBWAY is working with recreation and sport to build healthier communities (5 w's - who/what they support, how they support these groups/organizations, and why). He'll also speak on how recreation directors/programmers can build relationships with their local franchisees.
Luke MacDonald, co-owner of Aerobics First, is one of the founders of Nova Scotia’s Youth Running Series and Start2Finish (Running & Reading Program). Luke will speak on these and other programs/events he is involved in to help more kids paricipate in recreation and sport.
Presenters: Mike Bartlett, SUBWAY Franchisee, Digby - Luke MacDonald, Principal, Aerobics First
Champions of Recreation
Three Municipal Councillors, one urban municipality, one town municipality, and one rural municipality will explain how their respective communities have demonstrated that recreation is an essential service for that municipality. Each “Champion” will also share some of their unique municipal recreation services programs they are presently implementing. This session should be of particular interest to Municipal Recreation Leaders and Politicians, as the three different perspectives who have a shared common message... The Power and Potential of Recreation!
Panel:
- Warden Lloyd Hines, Municipality of the District of Guysborough
Greg MacArthur, Ward III, Town of Truro
CRM - HRM Councilor Jennifer Watts, Councillor, District 14 Halifax Regional Municipality
Exergaming
There is no single cause or cure to the physical inactivity crisis, so what role do video games play in the big picture? As much as we might want, video games are not going away… ever. In fact, the motion gaming systems that have been growing in popularity over the last few years are bringing more and more casual gamers to the market, especially families and seniors. In this session, you will learn about the three major motion gaming systems (Wii, Kinect, Move) and how they can be used as tools to enhance recreation programming and promote physical activity in youth and adults. We will highlight the pros and cons of each and identify which system is appropriate for different age groups. And, of course, you’ll get to try them all out!
Presenters:
- Paul Corbin, Recreation Director, Stellarton
Andre Bouchard, Active Living Facilitator, Municipality of the County of Annapolis
Student Networking Luncheon/Succession Planning
Visit the Events & Activities page for more information.
Wednesday Breakout Sessions - 2nd Block
1:30pm - 3:00pm
The Design Process + Trends in Recreation Facility Design- WHW architects
This session will take a look at the design process for a few of the new recreation facility venues in Atlantic Canada, with a discussion of how new design features can affect program efficiency, programming, durability, siting and flexibility.
Presenters:
- Joe Zareski, MIRAIC, NSAA, LEED AP
Anna Sampson, M Arch, LEED AP
Celebrating Volunteerism
(i) Lunenburg Queens Volunteer Partnership
The Lunenburg Queens Volunteer Partnership started 9 years ago as an idea by a group of recreation directors and coordinators; since then it's become a unique initiative to support volunteerism on the South Shore. I'd like to tell the story of how the Volunteer Partnership became what it is today, and what we've learned along the way about the challenges of supporting volunteerism in rural communities.
Presenter: Conor Falvey, Volunteer Navigator, Lunenburg/Queens Volunteer Partnership
(ii) Engaging Young Professionals in Volunteerism
Jason will be speaking on the ways in which FUSION Halifax works to connect, engage and inspire young people of Halifax to get involved in shaping the future of the city. In Particular, Jason will discuss the creation and launch of
Presenter: Jason McQuaid, volunteer, Fusion Halifax and Team Lead, Executive Compensation at Bell Aliant
(iii) Engaging New Canadians in Volunteerism
Looking for new ways to diversify your volunteer group? Want to learn how to create a more inclusive community? Consider attracting immigrant volunteers to your organization. Learn techniques on how to open your volunteer recruitment to the immigrant community in your area.
Presenter: Denise Aucoin, Coordinator, Volunteer Program, Immigrant Settlement and Integration Services
Effective Communication
Are you having trouble communicating your idea to Council, CAO or Stakeholders? This session is for you. A unique panel has been assembled that will help answer this question. There will be an opportunity for questions after presentations.
Presenters:
- Brian Cullen, CAO, County of Pictou
Gordon Wilson, Deputy CAO, Municipality of the District of Digby
Mark Phillips, CAO, Town of Kentville, Past Recreation Director of Kentville
Bill Boyd, Councillor, Town of Kentville, Former CAO Town of Kentville, Former Recreation Director, Town of Kentville
The After School Time Period
Children and Youth who are in poverty are more likely to be overweight and obese and face a number of barriers including access to affordable community recreation programs and healthy food. After school programs are a way to ensure there are no financial barriers to participation in programs. Join representatives from Guysborough County and the Annapolis Valley who have developed programs addressing this issue. A presenter will discuss how the Municipality of the District of Guysborough Recreation Department’s PACY program utilizes after school time in a two different schools and you will learn about their program training, development and implementation.
Panel:
- Mike Trinacity, Valley Regional Representative, Department of Health and Wellness
Phillip Hochman, Director of Recreation, Municipality of the District of Guysborough
Special Interest Sessions
3:15pm - 4:30pm
Sperry Partners - GIS Mapping & Demographic Analysis
Using information on the distribution of existing parks in the City of Saint John, NB and census data, this presentation will provide an example of how to use GIS mapping in statistical analysis of access to park space enjoyed by children and youth, and by residents according to their socioeconomic status.
Presenter: William Jones, Geomatics Analyst, Sperry & Partners
Healthy Eating in Recreation and Sport Settings (HERSS)
Throughout Nova Scotia, there are many examples of successful healthy eating frameworks in a variety of settings, including schools and child care. Recreation and sport settings already play a vital role in keeping Nova Scotians healthy by providing safe, public spaces for physical activity, recreation and sport. When nutritious food and beverages are available at these facilities it can have a strong impact on the health of the community.
HERSS initiative started last fall as a group of people recognized that great work was happening across Nova Scotia, and that a concerted effort was needed to advance healthy eating in recreation and sport settings. In this session you will learn about what’s happening in Nova Scotia, including information on the HERSS initiative and the local healthy eating support that is available. You will also hear about incredible toolkits and resources, as well as successful organizations and programs across Canada that can help you with healthy eating in your recreation or sport setting.
Presenter: Rikki Lee Andrews, Project Coordinator, HERSS Initiative
Public Swimming Pools: Is your pool safe, how do you know?
The NS Dept of Health and Wellness Environmental Health Responsibility Centre is currently reviewing environmental health programming in the province as part of ongoing efforts to renew and improve the public health system. One program area targeted for review is public swimming pools. Currently Public Pools are only inspected by Public Health Inspectors when there is a complaint. The 1987 Swimming Pool Guidelines are dated and require updating. This session is an opportunity to discuss the policy needs and concerns of Recreation Directors and pool operators as they relate to ensuring the health and safety of Nova Scotians who use public swimming pools in their communities.
Presenter: Carrie Fraser, Environmental Health Program Officer, Department of Health and Wellness
Girls and Women: Active Across the Lifespan
Looking for new resources and ideas to engage girls and women in sport and physical activity? This session will share success stories, tips and learnings from programs and initiatives designed to increase the participation of inactive girls and women, Aboriginal girls and women, Newcomer girls, mothers, families with low socio-economic status, and women aged 55-70+. A number of new resources from CAAWS, the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity, will be available for delegates.
Presenter: Laura Searson, Marketing and Project Manager, Canadian Association for Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS)
Self Directed Leisure Time
4:30pm - 6:00pm
For information about what to do while in Digby visit http://www.digby.ca/explore-digby.html.
Regional Competition
8:00pm - 10:00pm
Visit the Events & Activities page for more information.
Dance
10:00pm - 1:00am
Kick off your shoes and dance the night away!
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13th
Thursday Beakout Sessions - 1st Block
9:00am - 10:15am
Minimizing Environmental Impact of Trail Development
We will go through the basics of trail planning and design focusing on user experience and sustainable construction methods emphasizing the idea of doing more with less. Also, we will look at existing trails and how to revitalize them with minimal cost and maximum output.
There will be a field component to walk the nature trail on site and discuss the classroom session and how it applies.
Presenter: Garnet McLaughlin, Proprietor, Cobequid Trail Consulting
Bridging the Gap: Youth-Adult Partnerships
What is the connection between Youth Leadership and Community Development? Youth are an often untapped resource in our communities; however, certain skills are needed to unlock this potential. In this session, you will learn about the the benefits of engaging youth in providing rural community recreation opportunities, what makes it work (processes and tools), and the key ingredients to successful Youth-Adult Partnerships. Specific examples to be explored for key considerations and lessons learned include the Annapolis Youth Park and BaM! Body and Mind.
Presenters:
- Andre Bouchard, Active Living Facilitator, Municipality of the County of Annapolis
Reed Power-Grimm, Student/Youth co-chair, Annapolis Society for Youth Friendly Public Spaces
Use of Social Media/Marketing
Can social media help you share your story, build your brand, provide timely information to a variety of audiences and strengthen volunteer engagement?
Is your department taking advantage of the incredible and versatile low-cost channels for engaging volunteers, and supporters? Are you using a one-size-fits-all approach, or have you tailored your message to different generations communication preferences and priorities? Find out how you can reach different generations using blogs, social networks, viral video and other social media tools!
Amy and Deidre will provide personal examples of how they use various social media tools successfully to improve the activities happening at their workplaces as well as on a regional level in Northern Cape Breton.
Presenter: Amy MacKinnon, Community Centre Director, Bay St. Lawrence Community Centre
Deidre Fraser, Programs Director, North Highlands Community Museum and Organization
Nature Deficit Disorder (NDD)
Part A - Unstructured Outdoor Play - Benefits and Barriers
A world-wide movement is underway to re-connect children with nature. Unstructured (yet still supervised) outdoor play is an important component of this movement. In this session we will review the benefits to unstructured outdoor play, view photos of a variety of inviting outdoor play spaces, and discuss ways to overcome the barriers that are often associated with unstructured outdoor play.
Presenter: Elizabeth Munroe, PHD, Instructional Leadership, Assessment, and Elementary Education, St FX University
Part B - Wilderness Camping Trips- The longer the better
A three day camping trip can provide youth with an amazing opportunity to interact with nature. A three week expedition offers an almost unlimited opportunity. In the presenter's experience leading wilderness trips with Outward Bound, he has found “The Longer the Better”. In this session stories, photos and video will be used to give participants a sense of the transformational effect longer wilderness trips can have on our relationship with nature, each other and to ultimately realize that you can do more than you thought you could.
Presenter: Michael Crowtz, Outdoor Recreation Coordinator, Camp Brigadoon
Thursday Breakout Sessions - 2nd Block
10:45am - 12:00pm
Children at Play in Nature
Bringing children back to nature is a major challenge facing outdoor and environmental educators today. This indoor & outdoor session starts off putting “nature deficit disorder” into context. It then teaches fun and engaging outdoor activities to give children and youth joyful and profound experiences of nature. The activities were developed by Joseph Cornell, one of the most highly regarded nature educators in the world today and author of the award-winning Sharing Nature with Children books. The workshop will introduce a pioneering teaching strategy, called Flow Learning™. Please come prepared to be outside for part of the workshop (dress warmly and for varying weather).
Presenter: Janet Barlow, Sense of Wonder Environmental Education Director
Cross Community and Sectoral Collaboration
(i) Guysborough Active Living Network Community Information Online Consortium Project
The Guysborough Antigonish Active Living Network (GAALN) will present on their cross sectoral partnership which has lead to development of initiatives intended to improve Active Transportation Opportunities and the development of an Active Living Web Portal through the Canadian Information Organizations Consortium.
Presenter: Eric Lumsden, Active Communities Coordinator Department of Health & Wellness and Member of GAALN
(ii) Pictou County Shared Services
The Municipal Recreation Coordinators of Pictou County will present on the 30 year history of collaboration in recreation amongst six municipal units and specifically on their most recent efforts to formalize the partnership through a shared service model.
Presenter: Paul Corbin, Recreation Director, Stellarton
Branding Municipal Recreation
This session will review branding and marketing principles, best practices and the branding toolkit available to recreation leaders as they apply to programs, products, campaigns, events and organizations. The role of research, benchmarks and social marketing will also be explored. We will also look at the power of message development, spend some time discussing how to effectively create a strategic platform that can be used across audiences, mediums and related but separate programs. The differences between strategy and tactics; and uses of promotion, celebrity endorsements and borrowed credibility in attitudinal and behavioural change will be reviewed.
Presenters:
- Kim MacDonald-Vibert, President and Strategist, Alidade Marketing
Jim Vibert, Strategic Counsel, Alidade Marketing
The State of the Outdoor Recreation Sector in Nova Scotia, and Canada
The Outdoor Recreation sector has stagnated in recent years in Nova Scotia and across Canada. As a society, we are spending less time outside, are increasingly inactive, and increasingly disconnected from nature. The outdoors community of individuals and organizations is also fragmented. We need to take stalk of the present situation to strengthen the outdoor sector, and evolve with changing demographics, trends, motivational factors and barriers. This panel will explore the current state of the outdoor sector from a variety of perspectives including: Parks Canada, a rural municipal recreation department, Mountain Equipment Co-op, Paddle Canada, Halifax Search and Rescue, and the Department of Health and Wellness..
Presenters:
- Blair Doyle, President of both Paddle Canada and Canoe Kayak Nova Scotia, and Search Director with the Halifax Search and Rescue
John Glynn-Morris, Outdoor Recreation Consultant, Department of Health and Wellness
Garth Horne, Senior Social Science Analyst, Parks Canada – Atlantic Service Centre
Debra Ryan, Recreation Coordinator, Municipality of the County of Annapolis
Andrew Stegemann Community Program Manager, Mountain Equipment Co-op
Lunch
12:00pm - 12:45pm
Mental Health Plenary - Recreation and Mental Health, It's about Passion, not Prescription
12:45pm - 2:00pm
Much of the recent focus of research and media attention has been on the benefits of physically active recreation for addressing problems associated with inactivity and obesity and very little attention has been given to the importance of recreation for mental health and well-being. Our presentation will provide an overview of why recreation matters for good mental health along with examples of how recreation is a core focus of treatment for youth with mental health concerns. Opportunities to talk with colleagues about ways to incorporate a focus on mental health in your service setting will also be provided.
Presenters:
- Dr. Susan Hutchinson, Associate Professor, Dalhousie University
Ben Coulson, Recreation Therapist, IWK Health Care
Research Forum
2:00pm - 5:00pm
The Research Forum will provide an opportunity to share some of the cutting edge recreation research conducted in NS and to engage in discussion about its potential implications for you and your work.
Presenters:
Peggy Gallant Perceived barriers to coaching certification in NS schools
Nora Dickson and Charlene Shannon Daughters involvement in hockey and figure skating: Examining mothers' roles
Marilyn Johnston, Misty Doucette, Lindsay McCleod, Paul DesBarres, and Debby Smith Healthy eating research in recreation spaces in Shelburne and Yarmouth Counties
Wellness Sessions
2:30pm - 4:30pm
Historic Walking Tour of Downtown Digby
Cyclist Tour to Pt. Prim Lighthouse
Zumba
Nutrition - Making Healthy Choices
Grant Potter Memorial Hockey Game
3:00pm - 4:30pm
Visit the Events & Activities page for more information.
RNS Awards Banquet
5:30pm - 8:00pm
Band - Twist of Fate
9:00pm - 1:00am
Visit the Events & Activities page fore more information.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14th
RNS Annual General Meeting
7:30am - 9:30am
Closing Plenary with KEVIN MCCANN
Vice-President, MT&L Public Relations Ltd.
9:45am - 11:15am
Telling Your Story Online: Building a Digital Strategy.
It's about social media. No, wait; it's about a killer website. No, no...it's about mobile. Well, we know it's all of those things, but how do you bring it all together into a cohesive, persuasive, engaging digital strategy? How do you go from PR message to real engagement? What's the social piece? Does email fit in? What about mobile? Should I tweet? What about FourSquare? In this session, Kevin McCann -- an online advocacy specialist recently returned to live in Atlantic Canada from over a decade in Washington, D.C. -- will share his experiences and reverse-engineer successful digital campaigns. He'll use case studies to explore the tactics of great campaigns, looking at the entire digital footprint and how it can knit together different web tactics to tell a compelling story, galvanize supporters and meet objectives.
For a bio on Kevin check out the Conference Home Page!
Closing Remarks
11:15am - 11:30am
