Another wonderful opportunity to share with students:

http://www.georgewright.org/parkbreak2009.html

Park Break 2009

Application deadline December 31, 2008

Park Break is an all-expenses-paid park-based field seminar for graduate students who are thinking about a career in park management or park-related research and education. Park Break puts you in a national park unit for up to a week’s worth of field and classroom activities in close collaboration with park scientists and scholars, managers and administrators, and partner organizations.

The primary goal of Park Break is to encourage promising graduate students to experience the challenges of managing a national park unit. Through instruction from and dialogue with park resource managers, researchers, administrators, interpreters, and other professionals, Park Break participants will begin to understand the complexity of park research and management. This unique program is not offered anywhere else, as it focuses on scientific and intellectual inquiry at the graduate level specifically related to national parks. Although Park Break is open to graduate students of all backgrounds, an additional goal of the program is to provide minority students with experience in national parks in order to facilitate future careers in the field of parks and protected areas research and management.

Each Park Break is designed around a specific topic. Not only will you explore that topic in depth, you’ll see how it relates to the whole range of challenging issues facing park managers today. More than that, you’ll be involved with agency personnel who are actively recruiting the best young people in the park professions.

Participants in Park Break are chosen through a competitive application process. We are now accepting applications for Park Break 2009. The deadline is December 31, 2008.

Park Break is organized by the George Wright Society, the USA’s leading professional association for researchers, resource managers, administrators, educators, and other professionals who work in or on behalf of parks, protected areas, and cultural sites. GWS puts on Park Break in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey, National Park Service, Geological Society of America, Student Conservation Association, Texas A&M University, and Colorado State University.

Click the links to find out how you can apply to take part of the 2009 Park Break! And check out the Park Break 2008 Facebook Group.

West Virginia writes a good law – but the WV Supreme Court usually will change it

The West Virginia legislature passed a law this year that provides protection from litigation for park districts from people who act carelessly.

The bill came about because the cost of insurance was bankrupting parks; insurance costs had reason 300 percent over the past 10 years.

This is a great idea, except it is in West Virginia. The article speaks to other acts that the legislature has passed to protect an activity: “Hatfield-McCoy Trail, whitewater rafting companies and ski resorts.” In the whitewater rafting case the Supreme Court interpreted the whitewater rafting act to say that outfitters could no longer use a release. The act thought good, is not all inclusive and leaves big gaps in rafting protection.

To read the article see Bill passed to protect parks from lawsuits. To read a review of the West Virginia Supreme Court decision voiding releases in whitewater rafting see West Virginia court invalidates release and third part indemnification in case against whitewater outfitter and Murphy, v. North American River Runners, Inc., 186 W. Va. 310; 412 S.E.2d 504; 1991 W. Va. LEXIS 222.

Unless the law allows the parks to continue to use releases, they may end up with more not less lawsuits.

2009 Call for Abstracts – Leisure Research Symposium

We are pleased to announce the 2009 Call for Abstracts for the Leisure Research Symposium. The announcement, including the on-line submission form, is now on the NRPA website at this address:

http://www.nrpa.org/admin/content/previewContent.aspx?documentId=8350

NEW FOR 2009:

Please note TWO important changes:

First, the deadline for submissions will be January 26^th, 2009; and

Second, we have included an opportunity for individuals to submit a group of papers as a “symposium presentation”.

SUBMISSION PROCESS:

Please read the guidelines carefully – YOU MUST FIRST COMPLETE AN ON-LINE SUBMISSION FORM AND THEN E-MAIL YOUR ABSTRACT TO: LRS@NRPA.ORG

The on-line submission form can be found at the NRPA website listed above or it can be directly accessed at this address:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=DJYEH_2fXjOP_2f4a_2fBhg512Sg_3d_3d

If you have any questions about the process, please contact either one of us:

Dana Kivel—bdkivel@csus.edu and Heather Gibson—gibson@hhp.ufl.edu

2009 LRS Co-Chairs

We are also pleased to announce that Mary Ann Devine – mdevine@kent.edu will once again serve as the LRS Poster Coordinator for 2009.

We look forward to seeing you in Salt Lake City in October!

Sometimes you win one

A woman fell 120 foot over Kaaterskill Falls and sued the state of New York for her injuries. The woman was being lead blindfolded up to the falls wearing flat slip on shoes with no tread. She suffered numerous injuries.

The issue was whether or not the testimony of the injured girl or her friend was more credible. The friend was the one leading the girl blind folded up to the falls and is now estranged from the plaintiff.

The plaintiff claimed the state was liable for failing to adequately warn of the dangers; (I’m curious what signs you can read while blind folded.) and for failing to provide adequate barriers to prevent people from falling.

The court found the profound danger of the falls was open and obvious to anyone employing the reasonable use of their senses.

See: Court rules against fall victim

New UIAA standards coming

The UIAA, (Union Internationale des Association d’Alpinisme), has a new Safety Label for abseiling and belay devices coming out next year. That means that new standards are coming out for belay and rappelling devices. The goal of the UIAA is to update the standards on all equipment by 2009 year end. This update will also see new testing in several instances, particularly climbing harnesses and Via Farrata energy absorbing systems.

One very new idea will be recommendations on how climbers should inspect their own equipment and retire it. This will not be a standard. The Europeans understand the legal issues between a standard and a recommendation. It will be posted at the site when it is available.

I am a member of the Legal Experts Working Group of the UIAA.

See Safety label is expanding.

Shopping online saves paper….unless you shop at Backcountry.com

I enjoy shopping online. It is fast, saves time, saves gas and works well for me. I suspect I purchased something from Backcountry.com or Steep and Cheap because I was sent a Backcountry.com catalog today.

The print piece was obviously designed to drive people to the website because there are no prices in the catalog.

I went to the site and found a Catalog Sign Up link. I did not see any place to un-sign up for a printed catalog. So I went to their contact page and asked them what is going on?

I am very confused by your paper catalog. I was under the impression that on line sales sites prided themselves on their environmental ethics. A major one being not printing and mailing a catalog. I would suspect even more so for companies in the outdoor recreation industry.

I found a place to subscribe to wasting paper and killing trees but I did not find anyplace to unsubscribe from receiving paper.

How I unsubscribe from receiving a printed catalog from you?

I got a response and a very fast one also.

Dear James,

First, I apologize. Not only do I apologize that we should not have sent this print promo to you, but I also agree that we should not have paper catalogs (of any kind). There are certain people that love print catalogs, but not everyone. We try to please as many people as possible, and accommodate them when our attempt is unsuccessful, that is my job!

As you know, we are strictly online. We don’t have a huge catalog that we send out. The only print marketing we send out are the small promotional cards to provide our customers a discount to receive solid deals on gear. For some reason you were assigned to receive this print from us, but I promise that you have been completely removed. You will not be receiving any more of these from us.

If there is anything else that I can do for you, please respond directly to this email and I will make sure it happens. Thank you again for contacting us so we could resolve this problem.

I will personally remove you from our list. You can also do so yourself on our opt in/out page.

I also suggest that you check out www.catalogchoice.org It’s a great service.

Sincerely,

Backcountry.com is still printing and sending catalogs but at least not to me. And their response was fast!

Sometimes this Blog works

Remember the post: Antarctica High School Student Scholarship

2008 National Outdoor Book Awards Winners

National Outdoor Book Awards

http://www.noba-web.org/books08.htm

The National Outdoor Book Awards (NOBA) is a non-profit, educational program. It is not associated with any publisher or publishing interest. No more than two (2) NOBA releases are sent out per year on its email media list.

PRESS RELEASE

Winners of the 2008 National Outdoor Book Awards (NOBA) Announced

Color scans (print quality), an AP style MS Word copy of this release , complete reviews, and other supplementary art work (print or web resolutions) may be downloaded from http://www.noba-web.org/bookrel08.htm. For more information, contact Ron Watters (mailto:wattron@isu.edu)

Quick Summary of Winners. (Some categories have two winners – more details to follow).

• Natural History Literature. Winner. The American Chestnut by Susan Freinkel.
• Outdoor Literature. Winner. Forget Me Not: A Memoir by Jennifer Lowe-Anker.
• History/Biography. Winner. Grand Obsession by Elias Butler & Tom Myers.
• History/Biography. Winner. Fallen Giants by Maurice Isserman & Stewart Weaver.
• Classic Category. Winner. Through the Grand Canyon by Ellsworth L. Kolb.
• Classic Category. Winner. The Pacific Crest Trail by Thomas Winnett et. al.
• Children’s Category. Winner. The Pole by Eric Walters.
• Nature and Environment. Winner. The Last Polar Bear by Steven Kazlowski.
• Nature and Environment. Winner. The Great Lakes by Wayne Grady.
• Design and Artistic Merit. Winner. Surfboards by Guy Motil.
• Design and Artistic Merit. Winner. Bruce Aiken’s Grand Canyon by Susan Hallsten McGarry.
• Design and Artistic Merit. Honorable Mention. Soul of the Heights by Ed Cooper.
• Nature Guidebooks. Winner. Birds of Peru by Tomas S. Schulenberg, et. al.
• Outdoor Adventure Guidebook. Winner. Florida Keys Paddling Atlas by Bill & Mary Burnham.
• Instructional Category. Winner. Road Bike Maintenance by Guy Andrews.
• Instructional Category. Honorable Mention. Whitewater Kayaking by Ken Whiting & Kevin Varette.

General Press Release:

2008 NATIONAL OUTDOOR BOOK AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Pocatello, Idaho – A stubborn band of optimists who fought and refused to let the magnificent American chestnut tree slip into extinction. One man’s life-long obsession with hiking the hidden-away corners of the Grand Canyon. A young mother rebuilding her life after the death of her husband in a mountaineering accident.

These are some of the themes found among the winners of the 2008 National Outdoor Book Awards (NOBA).

“What a year it was,” said Ron Watters, professor emeritus at Idaho State University. “The writing in the outdoor field has always been good, but it just keeps getting better — and this year it was outstanding.” Watters is the chairman of the National Outdoor Book Awards, a non-profit program sponsored by the NOBA Foundation, Idaho State University and the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education.

As an example of outstanding writing, Watters points to the winner of the Natural History category, American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree. Authored by nature writer Susan Freinkel, it tells the story of the American chestnut tree which at one time stretched in vast numbers from Georgia to Maine.

The American chestnut tree had long been a part of the landscape of eastern US, but in a short forty year time span, an estimated four billion trees were killed off by an imported blight fungus. Only a handful of trees remained in California and the Pacific Northwest. In an absorbing mix of natural and human history, Freinkel chronicles the century-long struggle by a few individuals who set out to save this American cultural icon.

A beautifully composed memoir won the Outdoor Literature category. Written by Jennifer Lowe-Anker, Forget Me Not: A Memoir tells of the struggle to rebuild her life after her husband and famous mountaineer, Alex Lowe dies on an expedition in the Himalayas. Remarkably candid, it’s a story of adventure, passion, and hope reborn.

The History-Biography Category has two winners. One is a new, exhaustively researched but eminently readable Fallen Giants: A History of Himalayan Mountaineering by By Maurice Isserman and Stewart Weaver.

The other is entitled Grand Obsession. Written by Elias Butler and Tom Myers, it is the biography of Harvey Butchart, an author of Grand Canyon hiking guidebooks. Butler and Myers do wonders with this book, taking what seems at first glance a prosaic subject, and fashioning it into a fascinating portrait of a man hopelessly addicted to a place.

Complete reviews of these and the other 2008 winners may be found at National Outdoor Book Award Web site at: www.noba-web.org.

Here is a list of winners.

• Natural History Literature. Winner. The American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree. By Susan Freinkel. University of California Press, Berekely. ISBN 9780520247307
• Outdoor Literature Category. Winner. Forget Me Not: A Memoir. By Jennifer Lowe-Anker. The Mountaineers Books, Seattle. ISBN 1594850828.
• History/Biography Category. Winner. Grand Obsession: Harvey Butchart and the Exploration of the Grand Canyon. By Elias Butler and Tom Myers. Puma Press, Flagstaff, AZ. ISBN 0970097344.
• History/Biography Category. Winner. Fallen Giants: A History of Himalayan Mountaineering from the Age of Empire to the Age of Extremes. By Maurice Isserman and Stewart Weaver. Yale University Press. New Haven. ISBN 9780300115017.
• Classic Category. Winner. Through the Grand Canyon from Wyoming to Mexico. By Ellsworth L. Kolb. Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon, AZ. (Originally published by MacMillan in 1914). ISBN 0938216961
• Classic Category. Winner. The Pacific Crest Trail (Series). In three volumes: Southern California, Northern California and Oregon &Washington. Authors include Thomas Winnett, Ben Schifrin, Jeffrey Schaffer, Ruby Johnson Jenkins, and Andy Selters. Wilderness Press, Berkeley. ISBN’s: 9780899973166, 9870899973173, 9780899973753.
• Children’s Category. Winner. The Pole. By Eric Walters. Puffin Canada/Penguin Group, Toronto. ISBN 9780143167914.
• Nature and the Environment. Winner. The Last Polar Bear: Facing the Truth of a Warming World. Photographs by Steven Kazlowski. Braided River Books, an imprint of The Mountaineers Books, Seattle. ISBN 9781594850592.
• Nature and the Environment. Winner. The Great Lakes: The Natural History of a Changing Region. By Wayne Grady. Greystone Books, Vancouver. ISBN 9781553651970.
• Design and Artistic Merit. Winner. Surfboards by Guy Motil. Falcon Guides, Guilford, CT. ISBN 9780762746217.
• Design and Artistic Merit. Winner. Bruce Aiken’s Grand Canyon: An Intimate Affair. Paintings by Bruce Aiken. Text by Susan Hallsten McGarry. Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon, AZ. ISBN 9780938216933
• Design and Artistic Merit. Honorable Mention. Soul of the Heights: 50 Years Going to the Mountains. Photographs and text by Ed Cooper. Falcon Guides, Guilford, CT. ISBN 9780762745272
• Nature Guidebooks. Winner. Birds of Peru. By Tomas S. Schulenberg, Douglas F. Stotz, Daniel F. Lane, John P. O’Neill, and Theodore A. Parker III. Princeton University Press, Princeton. ISBN 9780691049151.
• Outdoor Adventure Guidebook. Winner. Florida Keys Paddling Atlas. By Bill and Mary Burnham. Falcon Guides, Guilford, CT. ISBN 9780762738571.
• Instructional Category. Winner. Road Bike Maintenance. By Guy Andrews. Falcon Guides, Guilford, CT. ISBN 9780762747467.
• Instructional Category. Honorable Mention. Whitewater Kayaking: The Ultimate Guide. By Ken Whiting and Kevin Varette. Heliconia Press. Beachburg, Ontario. ISBN 9781896980300.

More information on the awards program is found on the National Outdoor Book Award website at: www.noba-web.org.

# # #

Scouts retain right to exclusive use of trademark

The Boy Scouts of America sued a California man over the use of the word Scouts. The defendant had started an organization called YouthScouts. The judge in the case upheld the BSA claim stating the charter granted by Congress in 1916 gave exclusive right to the use of the word “Scout” to the BSA. Because the organization attempting to use the word was also a youth group there would be a significant likely hood of confusion.

The defendant had started a youth group which was using Scouting similarities when his daughter was not allowed to join the Boy Scouts of America and he was unsatisfied with the Girl Scouts of America.

The BSA right to use of the word was exclusive to the BSA because of their trademark of the word Scout. The word also has special meaning, as evidenced by the attempt of politicians who always want a Scout in uniform standing behind them on TV. Scout like in society today means industrious, honest and always there to help.

Many people may look at this as a big organization giving a small one a hard time. But besides the real issue of confusion, the law concerning trademarks requires that you defend you trademark or lose it. Most companies have spent thousands of not millions of dollars developing trademarks you must sue or lose your investment.

See Judge nixes use of ‘scouts’ for coed youth club

The 21st NERR Symposium

Saturday, March 28^th to Tuesday, March 31^st, 2009

Now in its 21^st year, the Northeastern Recreation Research (NERR) Symposium offers an unparalleled opportunity for individuals representing the governmental, educational and private sectors to share scientific knowledge, management experience and techniques; and positively influence the recreation management and tourism profession. Maintaining our tradition, this year’s meeting will take place once again at The Sagamore – a historic island resort located on west shore of Lake George in the Adirondack region of New York.

Abstracts: Abstracts for oral presentations or posters are welcome on the following topics:

* Natural resource management

* Historical/cultural resource management

* Emerging and existing trends

* Measurement and forecasting

* Travel and tourism

* Sustainable tourism

* Human dimensions

* Policy development and planning

* Management application

* Methodological & theoretical development

Abstracts should be submitted no later than Friday November 14th, 2008. All abstracts need to be submitted using the online abstract submission interface available at the conference website: www.esf.edu/nerr.

Abstracts should be 500 words or less and based on work that will be completed before the conference. Abstracts can be based on any type of data (e.g., surveys, experiments, content or historical analysis). Each abstract should provide a clear statement of the problem or objectives, give a brief description of the methods and substantive results, and end with a clear conclusion. Abstracts that describe proposed research are encouraged and will be reviewed and considered for inclusion in the poster session.

Roundtable Discussions: Once again the symposium will feature a series of Roundtable Discussions designed to get conference attendees together to share information, ideas, best practices, and research insights involving a current topic. Thus far, three Roundtable Discussion Sessions have been proposed for the 2009 conference:

* Sustainability & Climate Change – Kelly Bricker (Univ of Utah) & John Confer (California Univ of PA)

* Urban Recreation: Challenges & Initiatives – Dave Klenosky (Purdue Univ) & Lynne Westphal (USFS)

* Private Lands & Recreation Access – Walt Kuentzel (Univ of Vermont)

Additional Roundtable Discussion and Management Sessions can be suggested. Please submit ideas for these sessions using the online abstract submission interface available at the NERR website.

Conference Proceedings: Conference attendees will have the opportunity to submit a seven-page paper based on their presentation, poster, or roundtable discussion. These papers will be published in a Forest Service technical report that will be available online thru the NERR and FS websites.

Student Scholarships: Students are also encouraged to apply for conference scholarships (i.e., an award to cover the cost of conference registration) which are funded in part by Venture Publishing and a raffle held at the conference). Interested students (both undergraduate and graduate) should email a one-page letter (as an attached MS Word file) to the NERR Conference Chair that describes how their academic and professional interests will be enhanced by the Symposium. Along with that letter, applicants should include (as an attached MS Word file) a letter of recommendation from one faculty member. Requests for scholarships must be received by email no later than November 7, 2008. Students will be notified by email on January 5, 2009.

Thanks!

David B. Klenosky, Ph.D.

NERR 2009 Conference Chair

Department of Health & Kinesiology

Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN 47907-2046

(765) 494-0865

Email: klenosky@purdue.edu

Betty van der Smissen

Betty van der Smissen died early this morning. I’ve posted information about a research endowment in her name through the Association of Experiential Education and her funeral information below at Very Sad News about a Founder in Outdoor Recreation Law.

I met better 18 years ago at a conference. I had just read her three volume set of books, Legal Liability and Risk Management for Public and Private Entities. I had read them cover to cover because it was a treatise on the issues I was litigating. We were having a great discussion and I mentioned a reference in her book. As the discussion continued, she said “We’ll you said you’ve read my books, you know then there is a case with a one sentence release.” I was clueless. I guessed at a couple of cases and she would not tell me the answer. I then guessed Blide v. Rainier Mountaineering Inc. and she said I was right. I have no idea why I guessed Blide, but I am ever so thankful I did. However Betty also knew I was guessing.

I argued with her because I thought the release in Blide was more than one sentence. Again I got a professor statement, “look it up.” I still don’t agree with her on that point, but I value the lesson I learned. One of which was not to tackle a discussion with Betty unless you were well prepared!

I’ve never forgotten that case or Betty. We spent a lot of time together at conferences and on the telephone over the next 18 years. We argued passionately about several legal issues, the number one being standards. She felt it was necessary to have standards so people could have something to follow. I, from a litigation background believe standards are usually followed by the plaintiff’s to start litigation. I could make her get passionate about the issue, but we always enjoyed the arguments.

I asked her if she was ever going to move again when she recently moved to Arkansas. She said no, but mainly because she had run out of friends to help move her books. She had the library on recreation law. But she did not stop there. Her research and writing expanded into all aspects of outdoor and experiential education.

A couple of years ago I had misplaced Volume III of Legal Liability and Risk Management for Public and Private Entities. I was heartbroken more because I had lost a book of a good friend much more then losing a valuable book. A little more searching put all three volumes together again with great relief.

Each discussion, each conversation, each time I spent with her was educational and fantastic. Each discussion made me work hard and with a great big grin on my face because I knew she enjoyed the discussions also.

We shall all miss Betty. She was the first to look at the legal issues of recreating outside and the first to research the issue. She is leaving a big hole in my world which will not be filled. We owe her a big Thank You for her work, her dedication, her devotion to her students, her friends and her discipline

Blide V. Rainier Mountaineering, Inc., 636 P.2d 492, 30 Wn. App. 571 (1981). The one sentence release is “In consideration of, and as part payment for, the right to participate in such mountain trips or other activities and the services and food arranged for me by RMI I have and do hereby assume all the above mentioned risks and will hold them harmless from any and all liability, actions, causes of action, debts, claims, demands of every kind and nature whatsoever which may arise out of or in connection with my trip or participation in any activities arranged for me by RMI.” Although I still think the sentence following was instrumental in the court’s decision. J

Very Sad News about a Founder in Outdoor Recreation Law

“It is with sadness that I report that Dr. Betty van der Smissen died this morning at 4:30 from cancer. She worked and was involved in the profession right up to the last week of her life. She has made huge contributions to the field and has touched the lives of many of you. If you would like to make a memorial gift in her honor, a research endowment in her name has been established through AEE (Association of Experiential Educators). I have attached the brochure for all those who may be interested.”

For more than 50 years, Dr. Betty van der Smissen has dedicated her professional life to excellence in research and programming in the out-of-doors and to the professional organizations related to the outdoors.

Selected Aspects:

• Her early experiences in outdoor programming were with church camps. She was an early member of Christian Camping International.
• She was the first research chair on the American Camp Association (ACA) national board and served as president. She conducted research on the ACA camp standards that resulted in the first major revision.
• She worked with the American Association for Health Physical Education & Dance (AAHPERD) outdoor programs beginning with the Council on Outdoor Education.
• She attended the second meeting, in St. Louis, of what became the Association for Experiential Education (AEE), served on AEE’s original bylaws committee, and assisted in the development of the AEE Accreditation Program.
• Her university leadership with outdoor programs has helped shape the development of outdoor research and programming.
• She was the first director of the outdoor field campus at the University of Iowa, where she conducted outdoor education programs.
• Worked with the Stone Valley Outdoor Education Center at Penn State and conducted two national symposia on outdoor research and evaluation.
• Directed more than 100 theses and dissertations related to outdoor topics.
• Worked closely with a Japanese doctoral student who became the national leader for outdoor education in Japan.

Dr. van der Smissen’s dedication to encouraging and supporting outdoor research has resulted in defining career paths for many professionals and enhanced programs and experiences for untold numbers of individuals.

To continue Dr. van der Smissen’s support of and to further research related to outdoor benefits, the AEE has created an endowment in her name:

van der Smissen Research Endowment

Quality outdoor programming that makes a difference in the lives of children and adults rests with our ability to assess and validate its benefits through research.

Grants will be awarded for areas of research involving:

• outdoor programming in adventure, challenge, and experiential programs
• organized camping
• environmental education
• legal aspects related to outdoor programming

Research selected will focus on:

• benefits and outcomes
• attitudes
• interests
• good practices
• experimental design of exemplary programs

Make a tax-deductible contribution to the AEE van der Smissen Research Endowment by completing the form below and returning it to:

AEE van der Smissen

Research Endowment

3775 Iris Avenue, Suite 4

Boulder, CO 80301­2043

• Honor the invaluable contributions Dr. van der Smissen has made to the profession over a lifetime.
• Emulate her belief in the importance of “giving back” professionally.
• Demonstrate your belief in the importance of quality outdoor programming to human development.

Please make checks payable to: Association for Experiential Education, indicating van der Smissen Research Endowment in the memo line.

Funeral Arrangements

Please pass on this information to anyone you think might like to know. Dr. van der Smissen’s viewing will be Sunday, November 9 from 5:00-7:00 pm, and funeral will be Monday, November 10 at 1:00, both at Moore’s Funeral Home, 206 W. Center St. in Fayetteville, AR. There will be a second service in Newton, Kansas where she will be buried on November 13.

For anyone who may be coming from out of town to Fayetteville, if you let me know, I can help you make hotel arrangements, etc. The best airports are XNA (Northwest Arkansas) or Tulsa, which is 2 hours and 15 minutes away. Thank you for your support and concern for Betty and her family. She will be missed by our profession.

American Therapeutic Recreation Association

The American Therapeutic Recreation Association is pleased to invite the submission of manuscripts for the Volume 18 of the Annual in Therapeutic Recreation, the official research journal of the association. The purpose of the Annual is to further advance the body of knowledge of the therapeutic recreation profession by creating new knowledge and understandings in practice and in education. The Annual publishes a wide range of original, peer-reviewed articles such as

• Evidence-based practice/Empirical studies
  
• Systematic reviews
  
• Application of theories or models to practice and education
  
• Program or service evaluations/Case studies
  
• Methodological reviews
  
• Current issues and trends in service delivery or education
  
• Innovations in service delivery or education
  
• Practice protocols
  
  Announcement of Special Section –
  
  Outcomes-Based Research in Therapeutic Recreation
  

A special section devoted to research and scholarly discussion about client outcomes in therapeutic recreation practice. Example of appropriate submission include:

• Data-based research and/or systematic reviews on evidence-based practice in providing therapeutic recreation services to individuals with conditions such as dementia, substance abuse, obesity, depression, spinal cord injury, uncontrolled pain, and the like.
  
• Data-based research about the status of practice outcomes in the field.
  
• Scholarly discussions assessing the current state of affairs and/or the future of therapeutic recreation practice outcomes.
  

All manuscripts will be processed through the standard review procedure and undergo anonymous peer reviews.

Anonymous Review

The Editor will accept for anonymous review unpublished manuscripts suitable for the Annual. While a manuscript is under review, it may not be submitted to another journal. Typical review time is 10 to 12 weeks. Authors must prepare manuscripts according to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5^th ed.). Manuscripts not adhering to the APA Manual will be returned to the authors without review. The Instructions for Authors is attached to this Call. Manuscripts must be submitted electronically as ONE Word attachment to an email. The Editor will acknowledge receipt of manuscripts within 3 business days; authors should contact the Editor if acknowledgement has not been received within that time frame.

For further information you may contact the Editor:

Instructions for Authors

• In text referencing, page 217
  
• Citations on a reference list, page 240
  
• Tables, page 147
  
• Figures, page 176
  

10. Authors must ensure and include in their manuscript approval by institutional review committees and/or human subject protection boards, if appropriate.

Important APA Style Issues:

Submit Practice Protocols by February 14, 2009 electronically to:

(828) 227-7360

NEW JOURNAL LAUNCHED BY AORE, WEA, AND WKU RESEARCH FOUNDATION

New Journal Launched by AORE, WEA, and WKU Research Foundation

The Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education (AORE), the Wilderness Education Association (WEA), and the Western Kentucky University Research Foundation (WKURF) launched the Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership (JOREL) earlier today in San Diego, California at the 22nd Annual AORE Conference on Outdoor Recreation and Education. The three organizations have teamed together to create and manage this new peer-reviewed publication located at http://www.ejorel.com/. This announcement included the inaugural “Call for Papers.”

The journal’s mission is to improve outdoor recreation, education, and leadership through the publication and dissemination of peer-reviewed manuscripts centered on professional practice, research, and theoretical discussions. Manuscript submissions are encouraged from authors inside and outside of academia to help improve research and practice with a goal of reducing the disparity between the two in the represented disciplines.

Relevant topic areas (centered on outdoor recreation, outdoor education, or outdoor leadership) for the journal include, but are not limited to: outdoor recreation, adventure recreation, outdoor education, outdoor leadership, pedagogy, administration, programming, risk management, wilderness medicine, certification, participant behavior, trends, diversity, training, and outcomes. Manuscript submission guidelines are found on the journal’s website.

The founding journal advisory council (representing AORE, WEA, and WKURF) includes: Raymond Poff, Ph.D., Western Kentucky University; Tom Stuessy, Ph.D., Green Mountain College; Eric Frauman, Ph.D., Appalachian State University; Marni Goldenberg, Ph.D., Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo State University; Bruce Martin, Ph.D., Ohio University; and Connie Foster, MLS, Western Kentucky University.

The Editor-in-Chief is Aram Attarian, Ph.D., of North Carolina State University. Raymond Poff, Ph.D., Western Kentucky University will serve as the journal’s Managing Editor.

The journal, hosted at WKU, uses resources available through TopSCHOLAR™ http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ a University-wide, centralized digital repository dedicated to scholarly research, creative activity and other full-text learning resources that merit enduring and archival value and permanent access. TopSCHOLAR™ uses the Digital Commons platform from Berkeley Electronic Press http://www.bepress.com

The Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education (AORE) http://www.aore.org/ provides opportunities for professionals and students in the field of outdoor recreation and education to exchange information, promote the preservation and conservation of the natural environment, and address issues common to college, university, community, military, and other not-for-profit outdoor recreation and education programs.

The Wilderness Education Association (WEA) http://www.weainfo.org/ promotes the professionalism of outdoor leadership through establishment of national standards, curriculum design, implementation, advocacy, and research driven initiatives.

The Western Kentucky University Research Foundation (WKURF) http://ored.wku.edu/ is organized to support Western Kentucky University efforts to promote the development, implementation, and coordination of extramurally sponsored programs involving research, instruction, public service, and to legally protect, manage and commercialize intellectual property resulting from research, scholarship and creative activities on behalf of Western Kentucky University.

For information, contact Dr. Raymond Poff at (270) 745-2498.

CONTACT:

Dr. Raymond Poff

(270) 745-2498

raymond.poff@wku.edu

www.wku.edu/perec/

www.ejorel.com

Colorado Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan Completed

Colorado State Parks is proud to announce the completion of the 2008-2012 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP)! Included in the plan is a wealth of information on Colorado‘s
outdoor recreation trends, needs and issues, as well as a strategic planning framework to help address these needs and issues. The SCORP Executive Summary can be accessed at www.coloradoscorp.org or http://parks.state.co.us/Trails/LWCF/SCORPplan/. The full document will be uploaded to this website by late November 2008.

The SCORP is a requirement of the Land and Water Conservation (LWCF) Program and is managed by the National Park Service (NPS). Each year, the NPS distributes stateside grants that are appropriated annually by the United States Congress. The Colorado State Trails Program, within Colorado State Parks, manages Colorado’s LWCF program. If you have any questions or would like to request hard copies of the executive summary or completed plan, please send your contact information to Scott Babcock at scott.babcock@state.co.us or call 303.866.3203 x4306.



Dean Winstanley,
Director

Colorado State Parks

1313 Sherman Street, #618

Denver, CO 80203

Phone: (303) 866-2884

Open Contest for Great Colorado Images

Did you or someone you know snap an image that captures the spirit of outdoor sports in Colorado? Share it with us. Rocky Mountain Sports magazine has announced its Call for Entries for our first annual Year in Images feature, which will appear in the December issue.

We are looking for fun and compelling high-resolution images shot in 2008 in such sports as running, cycling, triathlon, mountain biking, hiking, adventure racing, rock climbing, paddling, fitness, yoga and snow sports. Although we will focus on local events and adventures, images will also be considered that show Colorado athletes at locations anywhere in the world.

We will select a broad mix of images to run in the feature and will name one shot for an Editors’ Choice Award.

Photographers are asked to submit up to five high-resolution digital images that can print at 4″ by 6″ at 300 dpi or better. If you don’t know how to determine image resolution, remember as a general rule that files which are less than 500 KB in size are too small. Images that are 1 MB or more in size are more likely to qualify.

Please identify the event, location, date and the people in the image and any other information that could be used for a caption. Please identify the photo credit. If a company name is credited, please also name the specific photographer. If you have a website, please include that information as well.

All images that are submitted will be published on a one-time-use basis in our Year in Images feature. Low-resolution versions may run on our website.

Files can be submitted via email to rheaton@rockymountainsports.com or on a CD to:

If you plan to email images, please keep image sizes below 10 MB and send each file in a separate email. If you have any questions about emailing images, please contact rheaton@rockymountainsports.com

Hurry, images must be received no later than November 3, 2008.

Regards,

Antarctica High School Student Scholarship

The Students on Ice Polar Education Foundation is offering 10 full scholarships valued at $12,500 USD each to American high school students interested in joining an educational expedition to Antarctica (December 25th – January 9th, 2008).

The scholarship includes all travel expenses from home to Antarctica and return. Travel arrangements will be arranged by the Students on Ice office.

Polar Scholarship applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Applicant must be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident.
  
• Applicant must be 14 to 18 years old and enrolled in high school.
  
• Applicant must demonstrate a passion for environmental issues and youth activism.
  
• Student must demonstrate a need for financial assistance.
  
• Students on Ice alumni are not eligible to apply for the scholarship.
  

For more information and the scholarship application form, contact Niki Trudeau, the Participant Coordinator at apply@studentsonice.com.

Students on Ice is an educational, not-for-profit, Canadian organization, providing youth from around the world with ship-based educational adventures to the Arctic and Antarctica. Our mandate is to educate and inspire the next generation of polar scientists, researchers, and environmental leaders – and in doing so, help to provide them with a greater understanding and respect for the planet. For more information, please visit www.studentsonice.com.

Litigation costs a lot of money

Many times attorneys talk about winning. I hear this more from novices to litigation. My first book about dealing with lawyers I cautioned the reader to make sure they understood the value of their pride. Once you start, your pride can become extremely costly.

Although winning may be important, surviving is critical. This may seem a little absurd, but the time and money spent getting to trial will bankrupt many small companies or individuals.

A recent article from the National Law Journal titled Cost of Discovery a Driving Force in Settling Cases, showed that the cost of settling is going up. The article talks about the shear cost of finding documents and information required or requested from the opposing side. With the electronic discovery rules this can mean months of time and hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs. Eighty-three percent of the lawyers surveyed said the cost of settling a case was a more important factor than winning.

If you are lucky enough to have these costs covered by insurance, the time can still bankrupt a small company. In major litigation, one person may have to be employed or assigned to deal with the issues of finding information, documents and files. This does not take into account depositions or time spent with your attorney preparing for depositions or trial. I used to tell my clients that for every hour their deposition was expected to last they needed to figure spending 2-3 hours with me preparing. For each hour of trial that would add an additional 3-4 hours for each hour of trial.

A two week trial and a 2 day deposition of a company president can take the president away from the office for almost 2 months.

If more than one officer or staff member is involved in the litigation this time can quickly multiply. How many small businesses can survive when three of its five employees lose a month to two months away from work, on top of vacations, sick time and holidays?

This plays into the plaintiff’s hands when they are looking at a personal injury suit. The injured plaintiff will have to produce medical records, income records and submit to a deposition. The income records will consist of copies of their tax returns. The medical records are kept now days so they can be easily delivered for anyone, insurance company, patient or opposing party in litigation. At most this could take a week of time to gather and prepare. A manufacture that is defending the trial may lose months of work in responding and preparing for litigation. The cost of winning in many cases exceeds the cost of settling. For Thirty thousand dollars the attorney and plaintiff have made a decent living and the manufacture has gotten rid of a problem. Very few if any trials can be defended for thirty thousand dollars. With the discovery rules I would find it rare for a small simple trial to cost less than $100,000 to defend.

Let’s turn this to a volunteer situation. You as a volunteer are being sued for your volunteer work leading a youth group, sitting on a board, or searching for a lost tourist. After you have used up your vacation time, you are faced with dealing with the litigation with no money coming in. Few if any employers are going to pay your to attend a trial to keep your home. Your homeowner’s insurance should pick up the tab for your defense, but there is no one to pay you to deal with the time, the stress and the copies you will have to produce.

It is for these reasons that you need to deal with problems before they grow into disasters. Any angry customer, parent or even member of an association may scream and bother you, but unsatisfied people simply go away now days. And attorneys are easy to find. See Serious Disconnect: Why people sue and
It’s Not Money

If you do serve on a board of directors or are an officer of a non-profit make sure the association or non-profit has liability insurance to cover its members, its officers and its board. Also make sure that the bylaws require the association or non-profit to reimburse you for your costs as an officer or board member in defending yourself in any action based on your volunteer work. If you are a volunteer make sure the organization you volunteer for has adequate (a lot) of liability insurance to cover the members for the volunteer work.

This insurance won’t cover your lost time, but at least there will be money there to force a win or a settlement so you don’t go bankrupt giving of your time.

Bet let’s hope that you only come as close to litigation as reading this article……

It doesn’t matter what you take to the grave.

It doesn’t matter what you take to the grave.

It doesn’t matter what you leave behind.

All that matters

Is that you have a few friends

Who are willing to take that last walk beside you.

Critical Dates Regarding the New Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

November 12th is the First in a Series of Critical Dates Regarding the New Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)

SGMA Members are being alerted now to act with all due speed. Non-compliance with the Act may put your company at risk for monetary and possible criminal violations.

SGMA and our Legal Task Force are in communication with the CPSC and attend all Commission meetings and hearings that pertain to issues affecting you. The following are some of the most pressing deadlines and issues that you need to be aware of and address immediately:

• On November 12, 2008 all products subject to the CPSIA bans and standards as well as subject to any similar rule, ban, standard or regulation under any other Act enforced by the Commission, must be self-certified with a General Conformity Certification.

• The General Conformity Certificate must be based on a “test of each product or upon a reasonable testing program.”

• Certificates must accompany each product or shipment of products covered by the same certificate. And, a copy of the certificate must be furnished to each and every distributor and retailer of the product.

• If a General Conformity Certificate does not accompany each imported product or product shipment then all of your products “shall be refused admission.”Products refused admission can be destroyed!

• The Commission warned that each company needs to go through a detailed analysis of its products to determine whether your products are subject to the CPSIA’s new self-certification requirements.

It is imperative for your company to do a thorough product analysis. Do not delay! Call SGMA or our Legal Task Force members for advice immediately.

This ALERT is merely a tip of the iceberg with respect to what SGMA members must do to comply with the CPSIA and its rolling dates over the next 2-3 years. To keep you well-informed SGMA’s Legal Task Force will have another conference call on October 27, 2008 to update you on the most pressing deadlines and issues involving the CPSIA and the up-to-date thinking of the Commission. Details regarding the call will be emailed shortly.

SGMA members can visit www.sgma.com for further CPSC details and to access a CPSC Improvement Act Recap PowerPoint Presentation that summarizes the issues that were discussed during the September 11^th CPSC Conference Call that SGMA hosted. Members can also contact Chris Strong, SGMA’s Director of Business Development, at 202.349.9413 or cstrong@sgma.com.

International Journal: Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development

Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development

web: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~db=all~content=t794297797~tab=summary

Editor: Stephen Wearing – University of Technology, Sydney

Book Review Editor: Kevin Lyons – University of Newcastle, Australia

ISSN: 1754-6370 (electronic) 1754-6362 (paper) Publication Frequency: 3 issues per year

Publisher: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp//rout Routledge

Aims & Scope

The Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development is a peer-reviewed, transdisciplinary and transnational journal. The journal more specifically is a social science journal, with a special emphasis on volunteer tourism. Although it will be anchored in the social sciences it would also seek to encompass contributions from related areas. The journal will provide an outlet for publication for tourism and leisure related research and encourage inter-disciplinary approaches to the relevant subject matter.

The Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development provides a forum for debate against the backdrop of cross cultural interactions from local to global based within international volunteer tourism. The approach adopted in this journal would attempt to include all areas of discourse that relate to volunteer tourism such as economics, marketing or management. The articles that focus on volunteer tourism would form the basis of the journal. However, it would also expand the relevance by engaging with the theoretical knowledge of support experiences of the volunteer tourist and their journeys, the way NGO’s engage in this form of tourism, the different elements that make up the volunteer tourism experience and the commodified forms of tourism that involve altruism (charity, peace, spiritual). It seeks to draw on the development studies area and regional development area to attract work from outside of the tourism industry. The interface of development and its related research and practice with tourism. It will also focus on the local and regional activities of volunteering and its effects, providing an outlet for those who wish to place people at the centre of this type of work.

The Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development encourages papers which investigate the impacts of volunteer tourism on the work of workers in developing countries such as women in marginal rural communities and the division of labour once tourism comes to these areas. The changes brought about by globalisation and the spread of transnational social relations in volunteer tourism such as culture shock, the influence of emergent geographies of power, cultural identities and citizenship will be examined. How the forces of globalisation contribute to social exclusion and localisation, undermining the possibility of some local communities participating in volunteer tourism.

Given the prominence of tourism and its ability to shape social orders, critical scholarship in volunteer tourism would allow us to examine travel beyond consumerism, travelling with a purpose, the right to freedom of movement versus the consumption that it entails and the possible benefits of volunteer travel. This journal invites papers which consider the implications of the expansion of the study of tourism addressing issues such as the evaluation of travel based on the benefits to poorer destination societies who often experience tourism in the form of further despoilment of their environments and distortion of their local economies towards services. It would provide the platform to link studies of unequal participation in tourism, with literature concerned with tourism, social and ecological justice and civil society in destination areas.

The Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development also seeks to encourage contributions related to innovations in social science research methods and their application to research on tourism. Being tourists, recording and interviewing tourists in situ, deploying covert methods, employing radical-innovative practices, the use of digital technologies, multi-site ethnographies and research studies, linguistic considerations, RRA and PRA techniques applied to tourism. Techniques that look at the disadvantaged stakeholders and enable the impacts on them to be examined.

The Journal of International Volunteer Tourism and Social Development seeks to widen and deepen understandings of such changing relationships and stimulate critical debate by:

Adopting a multidisciplinary approach Encouraging critical approaches to the study of the theory, policy and practice of volunteer tourism and social development Attempting to allow the voice of the ‘other’

or disadvantaged stakeholder to be heard. Focusing on how globalisation and social development through tourism can be analysed, encouraging multi view cross cultural perspectives.

Dr Kevin Lyons

Senior Lecturer

School of Economics, Politics and Tourism The University of Newcastle University Drive Callaghan NSW 2308 Australia

Phone: +61 2 4921 8989

Fax: +61 2 4921 7402

Email: kevin.lyons@newcastle.edu.au

Cricos provider number 00109J

Treasurer, Australian and New Zealand Association for Leisure Studies www.anzals.org.au

SIA PAUL ROBBINS AWARD IN JOURNALISM

Accepting Submissions Now.

The vibrant, exciting snow sports industry recently lost a dedicated and talented journalist – Paul Robbins. SIA, in partnership with NASJA (North American Snow Journalists Association), wants to recognize achievement in writing that tells the story of how innovation of equipment, apparel and accessories enhance the participants experience on the hill and trail.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2008.