The Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Participation in Partners Outdoors 2007 DD: 11/17/2006

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORBureau of Land ManagementWashington, D.C. 20240http://www.blm.gov November 6, 2006 In Reply Refer To:8300 (250) P EMS TRANSMISSION 11/07/2006Information Bulletin No. 2007-008 To:      State Directors                        Attn:  All Associate State Directors                                 All State Recreation Leads          All State Monument Managers          All State Partnership Coordinators          All State NLCS Program LeadsFrom:    Assistant Director, Renewable Resources and Planning Subject: The Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Participation in Partners Outdoors 2007                                                       DD: 11/17/2006Program Area:  Partnerships and Recreation and Visitor ServicesPurpose:  This Information Bulletin (IB) announces the Partners Outdoors 2007 Annual Workshop scheduled for January 7 - 10, 2007, at Lake Arrowhead, California and solicits BLM participation.  The BLM contingent usually includes the Director and/or Deputy Director and representatives from the Division of Recreation and Visitor Services, Office of the National Landscape Conservation System, and each BLM State organization.Policy/Action:  Each State Director (SD) is invited to nominate one individual to attend Partners Outdoors 2007.  The SD’s nomination package should include the nominee’s name, title, address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address; a head and shoulders photograph and a brief (not to exceed one-half page) biography suitable for publication in the Workshop’s program; and the name of the nominee’s supervisor for inclusion on the training form (SF-182) used in the procurement process.Time Frame:  The SD’s Partners Outdoors 2007 nomination package should be submitted electronically by November 17, 2006 to Hal Hallett at e-mail:  hal_hallett@blm.gov.Budget Impact:  The Division of Recreation and Visitor Services (WO 250) will pay the $450 tuition for the Washington Office participants and one representative from each State.  The tuition includes all materials and meals offered in conjunction with the Partners Outdoors 2007 Workshop.  All non-tuition travel expenses are the responsibility of the participant’s home office.  Planned BLM attendance is 15 employees.Background:  The Partners Outdoors program was initiated in 1992 to draw together tomorrow’s leaders from federal recreation-providing agencies and the recreation industry to accomplish two goals: (1) reinforce an awareness of shared customers and interdependence of the public and private sectors, and (2) encourage partnership-based actions to better serve recreation visitors to public lands.  After more than a decade, both goals have been achieved.  The tangible results of Partners Outdoors are especially heartening.  Major actions have occurred as direct outgrowths of Partners Outdoors meetings and dozens of other advances have developed as participants have maintained contact long after the formal sessions adjourned.  Specific accomplishments of the Partners Outdoors program are listed in Attachment 1.The BLM annually participates in the Partners Outdoors Workshop, along with the American Recreation Coalition (ARC), the Recreation Roundtable, the National Park Service, the Forest Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Federal Highway Administration.Attachment 2 describes the theme of Partners Outdoors 2007 along with information about participation, accommodations, transportation, displays, outcomes and attire.  ARC will make the lodging reservations; therefore participants should not make room reservations directly with the hotel.  ARC will contact each participant who is to confirm his/her room reservation with a credit card.In addition to listing the agenda and biographical information about each participant, the Partners Outdoors 2007 notebook contains literature germane to the Workshop theme.  The BLM participants are encouraged to submit material for inclusion in the notebook.  Please provide 150 copies, three-hole punched, directly to the ARC after receiving their approval to include the material in the partners Outdoors 2007 notebook.  Photocopied material should be printed double-sided when possible.Attachment 3 lists the draft agenda including the dates and times of the Workshop.  While the agenda is subject to change, the schedule is established to the extent this information will help participants make the necessary travel arrangements.Directives Affected:  None.Coordination:  This IB was coordinated with the ARC, the Recreation Roundtable, the Assistant Director for Renewable Resources and Planning, and the Director, Office of National Landscape Conservation System.Contact: Hal Hallett, Division of Recreation and Visitor Services, Bureau of Land Management, 1849 C Street, N.W., MS 302 LS, Washington, D.C.  20240; telephone: (202) 452-7794; fax: (202) 452-7709; e-mail:  hal_hallett@blm.gov.  Signed by:                                                       Authenticated by:Robert D. Roudabush                                     Robert M. WilliamsActing, Deputy Assistant Director                  Division of IRM Governance,WO-560Renewable Resources and Planning  3 – Attachments   1 – Partners Outdoors: A Tradition of Action (2 pp)2 – Partners Outdoors 2007: Unlocking the Fun and Benefits of the Outdoors to Urban Americans, and Especially Urban Youth (2 pp)3 – Draft Partners Outdoors 2007 Agenda (2 pp)