John Henderson
Executive Director, Park Rx America
John Henderson, Executive Director of Park Rx America, is a Certified Parks and Recreation Executive, attorney, and city planner with over 25 years of experience in parks and recreation at the Chicago Park District and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. John earned a Juris Doctor degree from The John Marshall Law School, a Bachelor’s in Community Planning from the University of Cincinnati, a Certificate in Public Performance Measurement from Rutgers University, and certificates in Public Health Fundamentals and Human Health and Nature from the Eppley Institute at Indiana University. John has been an instructor at the Park and Recreation Directors School and served as Chair of the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies.
Diana B. Allen
Chief, Healthy Parks Healthy People, National Park Service
Diana serves as Chief, US National Park Service – Healthy Parks Healthy People to strengthen society’s recognition and reliance on the role of parks in contributing to the health of people, health of ecosystems, and sustainability of the planet. Diana has 20+ years of experience in the public and private sectors to create health promoting conservation and recreation programs, events, and policies, with lasting impact throughout the United States and the World. As a catalyst, convener, and adaptive leader, she has focused most of her career on efforts resulting in new prototypes for promoting the health of people and the planet- from river conservation, water quality, wildlife habitat, parks, and recreational trails, and coalition building at local, national, and international levels.
Myron Floyd, PhD
Dean, College of Natural Resources, North Carolina State University
Dr. Myron F. Floyd currently serves as Dean of the College of Natural Resources at NC State University. He first joined the college in 2005 as a professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management. In 2010, he was appointed to serve as director of graduate programs for the department, and in 2014, he became department head. Floyd is widely recognized as a leading scholar focused on understanding race and ethnic patterns in outdoor recreation behavior. His most recent research examines how public parks and greenspaces and other features of the built environment contribute to physical activity in low-income communities of color. He is co-author of Race, Ethnicity, and Leisure: Perspectives on Research, Theory and Practice from Human Kinetics. In 2008, he was awarded the Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt Award, the highest award for research excellence from the National Recreation and Park Association.
Keith Tidball, PhD
Senior Extension Associate and Assistant Director, Cornell Cooperative Extension
Dr. Tidball is a Senior Extension Associate in the Department of Natural Resources, and Assistant Director of Cornell Cooperative Extension for Natural Resources and Environment. He leads a focal area on Veterans, Military Families, and Disaster Education. He coordinates a suite of projects dealing with veterans and military families, and also serves as the Program Leader of the New York State Extension Disaster Education Network. Dr. Tidball conducts research, extension, and outreach activities in the area of ecological dimensions of human security. He is focused on natural resources management questions at the leading edge, “at the tip of the spear,” in places and time periods characterized by violence, conflict, disaster or war. This work includes vulnerability assessment, resilience analysis, risk management and adaptation strategies within linked human-environment systems, as well as cultural systems analysis within these contexts.
Gregory Bratman, PhD
Assistant Professor of Nature, Health and Recreations, University of Washington
Gregory Bratman’s work takes place at the nexus of psychology, public health, and ecology, and is focused on investigating the ways in which the environment is associated with human well-being. He takes both empirical and theoretical approaches to understand how nature experience impacts human mental well-being, specifically cognitive function, mood, and emotion regulation, with an emphasis on people living in urban environments. He is also working to inform the ways that the mental health effects of nature can be incorporated into ecosystem service studies, and in efforts to address health inequities. Gregory is a Harvard JPB Environmental Health Fellow and the Doug Walker Endowed Professor.
Rick Archer, FAIA, LEED AP
Senior Principal, Overland Partners
Rick Archer, FAIA, is a founding partner at Overland Partners Architecture + Urban Design and plays an active role as Design Principal with a focus on projects in the areas of education, healthcare, non-profit and urban design. Under Rick’s leadership, Overland’s work has been recognized in places of cultural and natural significance, with notable awards including the AIA’s COTE Top 10 Award, Architect Top 50 Award in Sustainability and Design and the Texas Architect Firm of the Year Award among other national, regional and local awards. In his role as CEO, Rick leads an international community of creative problem-solvers at Overland. Serving as a mentor, teacher and collaborative partner, Rick is known for drawing out the best from his teams and clients. He is an active leader in community initiatives around the globe, with a focus on education, sustainability, social equity and design that inspires human flourishing.