Natasha Burr will soon graduate with a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and certificate in Environmental Ethics from The University of Georgia. She is a LEED Green Associate and drafts maps for the Cultural Landscape Lab. She is a radio host on WUOG, the college radio station, and spends her free time throwing pottery on a wheel, hiking, and visiting museums.
“What’s so great about Park Pride, and what I’m looking forward to the most, is having the opportunity to be a part of something so much bigger than myself that impacts the human experience and generally improves people’s lifestyle and well-being.” Natasha Burr, Park Visioning Intern
As the Park Visioning Intern, Natasha will assist communities in re-imagining their parks, overcome design challenges, and enhance the capacity of Park Pride’s Visioning team!
Learn more about Natasha through our interview below.
Why are parks important?
Great parks improve how people live, relax, and experience a place. They become a central location for some community members to meet and interact, and a place of solace from the rest of the world to others. Great parks are aesthetically pleasing spaces that provide people with the ability to immerse themselves in the natural world while simultaneously staying in the city.
Park Pride’s mission is “to engage communities to activate the power of parks.” In what ways are parks “powerful?”
Parks are “powerful” because they provide people with a place to get in touch with nature when they ordinarily wouldn’t have the ability to do so. This interaction gives people a sense of harmony with both nature and among other humans because they connect with a common appreciation for parks.
Parks are also fundamental to a child’s development as how they play in a park is bound only by the constraints of their imagination – and general park rules, of course 🙂
Why is it important for communities to have a voice in their parks?
Since parks are for the people, the people deserve to have their say in what happens to their parks. Park spaces are dynamic and attract different members of the community depending on what they enjoy doing at the park – it’s important that all of their voices are heard.
What are you looking forward to the most about your position as Park Visioning Intern?
What’s so great about Park Pride, and what I’m looking forward to the most, is having the opportunity to be a part of something so much bigger than myself that impacts the human experience and generally improves people’s lifestyle and well-being.
I also can’t wait to get more involved with community engagement. It’s refreshing to listen to other people’s perspectives of what makes a park successful and what they most enjoy about public greenspaces.
What’s your favorite local park?
My favorite local park is Historic Old Fourth Ward Park. Not only for its innovation in sustainable storm water infrastructure, but also because of the elegant juxtaposition of a rich natural environment in the middle of an urban space. I love walking to it from the Atlanta BeltLine and some of my fondest memories include stopping over at the park with friends before watching bands play at the Masquerade.
What’s your favorite park activity?
I love playing disc golf in parks. It’s a great way to explore the woodlands and find a nice place to watch the natural scenery. On a whim, I once drove 260 miles to a destination disc golf course in the center of the Smoky Mountains!