This summer, Park Pride is thrilled to welcome four full-time interns! Our interns will help support efforts across our Visioning Program and Community Building Program, getting hands-on experience in Atlanta’s parks and greenspace sector. Keep reading to get to know our fantastic summer interns!
Prashanti Pathak – Park Visioning Intern
Prashanti is studying for a master’s degree in Urban Design at the Georgia Institute of Technology, following her undergraduate degree in Architecture. She believes that properly designed urban spaces, such as parks, bring communities together, protect the environment, and shape the quality of life, especially as more people move toward urban living in the future. She enjoys helping people, and in her own way, she’s trying to support more people and create a greater impact in her community in Nepal, where she comes from and where communities are experiencing the effects of rapid urbanization.
Continue reading to get to know Prashanti in her own words!
What does the “power of parks” mean to you?
The “power of parks” is its ability to bring people together and give humans a space to connect and be social, as they are naturally meant to be.
Why are parks an important part of the community?
Parks are important because they do not discriminate as they are welcoming spaces for everyone, fostering well-being and a sense of belonging within cities. They provide opportunities for people to connect with nature, promote active and healthy lifestyles, and help relieve stress.
What are you most excited about regarding your new role?
I am excited to work with communities and input their voices into the visioning of the park. I believe a bottom-up approach like this will be the most effective in public space design of this scale in any community, and I am excited to see how these ideas are implemented in real life through Park Pride.
How do you hope to empower communities to engage and make a difference in their neighborhood parks?
I hope to empower communities by helping residents actively participate in the planning and visioning of their neighborhood parks. When people feel heard and included, they develop a stronger sense of belonging and responsibility toward these public spaces, and I would love to support them in this process.
What’s your favorite park memory?
My favorite park memory is learning martial arts in the open ground of a park nearby by house during my teenage years.
Favorite Atlanta park (and why)?
My favorite park in Atlanta is Old Fourth ward Park, because of its serene environment and its unique example of water retention infrastructure in real life. It’s a great example of how thoughtful urban design can create recreation spaces and solve environmental challenges at the same time.
Shreya Panthangi, Park Visioning Intern
Shreya is a Masters student studying City and Regional Planning at Georgia Institute of Technology, with a specialization in Economic Development. She is also an architect and artist and truly enjoy experimenting with visual media. She identifies as a hobby collector, self-proclaimed spaghetti critic and picnic enthusiast.
Continue reading to get to know Shreya in her own words!
What does the “power of parks” mean to you?
The “power of parks” to me is that it grounds us. Parks take us out of our inner world and reconnect us with the world around us.
Why are parks an important part of the community?
Parks are green spaces in our neighborhoods that not only act as lungs of concrete cities but also encourage connection and interaction, bringing everyone together for one common goal, that is to have fun. Parks remind us to ‘touch grass’ and what being human truly means.
What are you most excited about regarding your new role?
I have always wanted to work closely with communities and local governments. I am excited to contribute to the meaningful and impactful work that Park Pride does. Design, community engagement and planning all go hand in hand, and I am looking forward to working within this intersection.
How do you hope to empower communities to engage and make a difference in their neighborhood parks?
Letting communities take charge of their neighborhoods and spaces, in my opinion, brings out the best results that are tied to the local narrative. As a planner-architect, I believe our role is to guide, direct and support the communities’ ambition and vision that they have for their neighborhoods.
What’s your favorite park memory?
My favorite park memory is actually my first park memory. Sharon Woods, in Sharonville, Cincinnati, Ohio, was a family favorite park and the park where I spent my first five formative years. The lake with ducks swimming, forest around and children friendly playscapes and fountains are still etched into my heart.
Favorite Atlanta Park (and why)?
Cliché, but my favorite Atlanta Park is Piedmont Park. It was the first park I visited in Atlanta with my partner and has been a recurring favorite. I love the lake, greenery, and variety of animals you can find in the park. Piedmont Park feels like an escape from Atlanta’s city madness.
Sonya Parmer, Community Building Intern
Sonya is a rising sophomore at Oglethorpe University. She majors in Psychology and aims to become a mental health therapist. She firmly believes in assisting and supporting the community, she thinks it is extremely important that everyone has a voice and an accessible way to express themselves. She minors in art and creative writing. Overall, she likes to blend fun, community, and representation together in all aspects of her life.
Continue reading to get to know Sonya in her own words!
What does the “power of parks” mean to you?
In my opinion, the true “power of parks” is their ability to help connect and heal communities. Parks are so important to the development of healthy groups and individuals; they work as a space where people can go to unite, clear their minds, and enjoy the wonders of nature. Parks are a stark contrast to the fast-paced lives many individuals have, and by engaging in park activities people can gain all sorts of fun, diverse, and enjoyable experiences.
Why are parks an important part of the community?
Parks are an important part of the community because of how they contribute to the development of relationships, connections with nature, and overall happiness of a group or individual. In my opinion, with the increase in use of technology and AI, parks are more necessary than ever. They allow people to leave their bubbles of familiarity and come into a new environment that can foster connection and growth.
What are you most excited about regarding your new role?
In becoming a Community Building Intern, I am most excited to engage with a wide variety of diverse communities. I am looking forward to expanding my knowledge of people, the different needs they may have, and the various ways I can help them.
How do you hope to empower communities to engage and make a difference in their neighborhood parks?
I hope to support and encourage communities by meeting with them in person and virtually to record all the information they share about their wants and needs for their parks. I want to be able to help in any way I can and be able to watch as they blossom and flourish in an environment that we were able to create together.
What’s your favorite park memory?
As a kid, I lived in Niagara Falls, New York. In elementary school, I was part of an after-school program. On hot days, we would walk to North and Lockport Park as a group. The walk wasn’t very long, but I remember cutting through tall grass and even seeing wild deer along the way. North and Lockport was my favorite park as a kid, I remember playing tag, hide and seek, and make-believe restaurant. This park is now boarded up and not many children use it anymore, but the nostalgia I have for it is everlasting.
Favorite Atlanta park (and why)?
Woodruff Park is one of my favorite Atlanta parks. When I moved to Georgia, this was one of the first parks in Atlanta that I experienced. I remember my first visit there; I went with my mom, and I recall genuinely loving all of the water and cool structures. In the part of New York that I’m from, we didn’t have any parks that were like this, and I was amazed.
Angelise Rivera, Community Building Intern
Angelise is pursing a master’s degree in Public Policy with a concentration in Environmental Policy at Georgia State University. She is very passionate about politics and sustainability. She wants to strengthen environmental regulations and help create a world that benefits everyone. In her free time, she likes to bake, hike, and read.
Continue reading to get to know Angelise in her own words!
What does the “power of parks” mean to you?
It means having a space where people can connect and build community. It also improves one’s mental wellbeing. I know for me, spending time in nature helped me feel more grounded.
Why are parks an important part of the community?
Parks are important because they provide an accessible space for exercise and being outdoors. In addition, they help regulate temperatures, keeping cities cooler. They are also an economic driver as they support job creation and increase the desirability of neighborhoods.
What are you most excited about regarding your new role?
I am most excited to learn more about advocacy and how it can help Friends of Park groups as well as Park Pride advocate for more resources for parks. Also, to learn how Park Pride functions as a nonprofit and to learn more about this sector. In addition, how sustainability ties to the work Park Pride does and what organizations they partner with to advance sustainability initiatives.
How do you hope to empower communities to engage and make a difference in their neighborhood parks?
I hope to empower communities by showing what parks offer and helping them visualize what kind of environment they want to be around and live in. By having a connection to a park, we are more likely to take ownership and feel proud to be part of it.
What’s your favorite park memory?
Going on the swings, walking barefoot on the grass, and having picnics. It’s something I still do as I get older because it makes my inner child happy.
Favorite park (and why)?
One of my favorite parks in Georgia is Swift Cantrell Park in Kennesaw, they have the best swings.