Five Rivers MetroParks is dedicated to protecting Greater Dayton’s natural heritage and to providing outdoor recreation and education experiences that inspire a lasting personal connection with nature

Goals

• To be recognized as the leader in land protection; caring for what we have and adding what we need.
• To connect today’s 21st century audience with nature and conservation.
• To be recognized as an indispensable leader in the quality of life, wellness and economic vitality of the community.
• To be recognized as a responsible steward of the Montgomery County taxpayers dollars and as returning a value for those dollars

Our Changing 21st Century Audience
In the last ten years, Five Rivers MetroParks has seen a significant change in our audience, specifically in their:

• Orientation to the natural environment
• Ideas and expectations of how to use their leisure time, and their beliefs of how much leisure time they have or should have
• Increased concerns for physical comfort and personal security

Today’s audience, referred to throughout our plan as today’s 21st Century Audience presents a unique set of needs and wants and demands of Five Rivers MetroParks that we understand them and offer them programs and facilities that meet their lifestyle needs. For example, today’s 21st Century Audience enjoys less inter-generational activities, is more dependent upon physical comforts and is more likely to have concerns about personal security. Today’s 21st Century children are less likely to play outside or to have a strong orientation to nature. There is an increased interest in active, independent recreation; people want to be more in control of their own park experience. The desire for independent use is also partly driven by today’s busy lifestyles which have led to a rise in impulse-driven, unscheduled use of our parks. Finally, technology also has reached outside, into parks, and we must integrate technology into our parks and programs to respond to today’s audience.

"Nature of Our Future Video"