Woodlands Partnership Outreach Committee Seeking Feedback
ADAMS, Mass. — The Education, Outreach and Research Committee of the Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership is looking to incorporate feedback on the group's revised organizational plan into future outreach efforts.
Subcommittee Chair Beth Girshman said future events could be an opportunity to get feedback on the partnerships organizational plan, a draft of which is due in the coming months.
"We did talk at one point about a way to use these public meetings, these public programs, not just as education or as a form of outreach, but as a way to get input into the plan from the public," she said. "I don't know if there's a way to incorporate that in a future public program. It could be a short survey; it could be a variety of things. It's just that when you have an audience already, that seems to me to be a really good taking-off point from gathering information from that group of people."
Joseph Nowak, board member and Adams representative, said a plan draft should be complete before gathering public feedback.
"I think we had some discussion about before we decided to get people's input, we thought that it probably would be better when the draft was finished," he said. "Our updated draft and final version. That would be the better time to, perhaps, get people's input."
Lisa Hayden, administrative agent for the partnership and outreach manager for the New England Forestry Foundation, said the board plans on doing a meeting on March 8 when the public can see the draft for the organizational plan.
"Which would be a chance where, after the board taking a first look at the draft plan, the public would be invited to that to begin, you know, weighing in and giving feedback," she said.
The partnership, according to Hayden, also wants to meet with each member community individually for additional feedback.
The board also discussed the partnership's outreach brochure and possible changes to the design. Executive Committee Chair Hank Art said the brochure has become outdated since its creation.
"We've been around two years, we're going into our third year. There's major things we've accomplished that need to be highlighted," he said. "Rather than taking the original brochure, which was largely aspirational, saying, 'This is what we want to do.' And there's an opportunity now to say, 'This is what we've done.'"
Art said an update of this kind could line up perfectly with the release of the finalized organizational plan. He said incorporating the new plan into literature is crucial, as it could influence communities that have not yet joined the partnership.
"By the time that brochure would be coming out, the plan would be coming out," he said. "And having some of the substance of what's in the plan in the brochure, in an abbreviated form, to me seems like an opportunity."
Tags: mohawk woodlands partnership,