Nature Park Management II

Garden School -Distance Learning Course

Develop skills to undertake the management of practical aspects of nature parks.

The focus of this course is understanding how humans impact on natural environments, and how park management seeks to provide quality recreational and educational experiences without compromising the parks’ natural environment.

What Does a Nature Park Manager Do?

• Preservation of natural habitats
• Land rehabilitation
• Wildlife management
• Control of feral pests
• Management of natural hazards
• Visitor management

 “This course will help you to round off your skills! Couple this course with the previous one to provide you with broader plant skills. It also enables you to understand all the components that make up a nature park.” - Adriana Fraser Cert.Hort., Cert.Child Care, Adv.Cert.App.Mgt., Cert IV Assessment and Training, Adv.Dip.Hort, ACS Tutor.

Lesson Structure

There are 10 lessons in this course:

1. Natural Environments
   • preserving natural environments; plant associations and environment rehabilitation
2. Recreation and the Environment
   • impact of recreation on natural environments
3. Wildlife Management in Nature Parks
   • impact of park visitors on wildlife; managing wildlife
4. Visitor Amenities in Nature Parks
   • design; provision of visitor amenities including picnic areas and campgrounds; management of facilities
5. Park Interpretation
   • interpretative facilities including signs and education programs
6. Trail Design and Construction
   • designing access routes in parks; designing and constructing walking tracks
7. Water Areas
   • conserving and managing natural water bodies in nature park; impact of humans on water areas
8. Marketing Nature Parks
   • strategies used to promote nature parks
9. Risk Management I
   • identifying, minimising and managing natural hazards; safety issues
10. Risk Management II
    • preparing a risk management plan.

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Explain the role of nature parks in preserving natural environments.
• Explain the role of nature parks as a recreation resource.
• Explain the issues of managing wildlife in nature parks.
• Explain the design of visitor amenities in nature parks and their impact on the environment.
• Explain the role interpretative facilities in nature parks.
• Explain the design and construction of trails within nature parks.
• Explain the importance and management of natural water areas in nature parks
• Explain the importance of effective marketing in promoting nature parks.
• Explain safety issues and hazard management in nature parks.
• Explain the use of risk management plans in nature parks.