A Wild Summer with Wild Productions

 By Kenny L. Tapp

It was the fourth summer for the Historic Hoosier Hills sponsored project, Wild Productions, to be in full swing at Versailles and Clifty Falls State Parks.  Various educational programs and exhibits were completed during the summer of 2003, many with the aide of park staff and volunteers from across Southeast Indiana.  More than eight projects and six public presentations were among the highlights of another successful summer that influenced more than 15,000 state park guests’ experiences. 

Enthusiastic volunteerism from local citizens and support from Historic Hoosier Hills has played a vital role in the productivity of Wild Productions’ project goals and ambitions.  A recent study by Indiana University’s Center on Philanthropy and School of Public and Environmental Affairs is believed to be the first to assess the impact of nonprofits on Indiana’s economy and social structure.  The report clearly demonstrates that nonprofit organizations have significant impacts on Indiana’s workforce and are invaluable for creating new and unique opportunities within the state.  It has been the clear goal of Wild Productions for the past four years to provide and create new and unique opportunities at the nature centers of Indiana State Parks.

Each summer, collectively, Wild Productions’ projects typically revolve around a central theme.  The Civilian Conservations Corps was a historic theme for 2002, after an exciting severe weather theme in 2001.  Individual themes produced individual exhibits that would remain at their respective nature centers for decades.  A scaled version of an authentic, early 1940’s CCC cabin was constructed at Versailles State Park.  Poster panels, artifacts, and audio-visual equipment allow visitors to actively learn about the history of the park.  The severe weather theme produced a Tornado Chamber, also at Versailles, where severe weather is actively demonstrated with a moving tornado right in front of the visitor’s eyes.  Exhibits that encourage active learning, as opposed to passive learning, are a key to enhancing the educational and interpretive values of our state parks.  Technology was the theme for this past summer at both Clifty Falls and Versailles State Parks.

A poll completed by CNN in November of 2002, showed that more Americans are choosing to spend more of their time in the outdoors than ever before.  Wild Productions was created to increase the visitation to the nature centers of both state parks while increasing environmental education.  A necessary step in this movement was to bridge the digital gap that exists between our Indiana State Parks and the modern society.  Blending new, advanced technology and the native outdoors was the overall goal and theme for 2003.  While the task is still at hand and in motion, we were able to introduce new, unique, and exciting technology. 

Expanding from a Whitetail Deer video produced during the summer of 2000, an interactive DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) touch-screen exhibit was completed at the Clifty Falls State Park Nature Center.  The exhibit was constructed to be incorporated with an existing exhibit featuring that park’s native prairie ecosystems and how deer, birds, plants, and insects affect the life and longevity of that habitat.  The opportunities presented by this exhibit are boundless as DVDs can be changed regularly to meet the environmental educational needs of the visiting public.  Currently, a DVD about Lewis and Clark is on exhibit while the deer DVD and others are under production.

Installation of key technology devices at the Versailles State Park Nature Center consumed most of the summer.  Starting at the CCC exhibit from 2002, a surround-sound system was installed so that visitors can hear a narrator depict the stories of the young-men that built the state park.  Future expansion of that exhibit includes a hologram projection system to present a “ghost-like” appearance to further enhance the learning objectives for our younger audiences.  The reception of a grant from the Rising Sun Regional Foundation paved the way for the most exciting technological advancement in the Indiana State Park system today.  With the grant, a unique website will be produced for Versailles State Park.  The website will feature all of the park’s facilities, activities, and unique natural resources.  The grant funded a graphics workstation to be used by interpretive staff to produce graphics, video, audio, and programs for presentations, exhibits, and the website.  A professional digital camera was also funded to allow interpretive and park staff to take high quality photographs for use in a variety of applications.  A 120 gigabyte server was also purchased to host the park’s new website (http://www.versaillesstatepark.com).  The unique opportunity was presented during this summer for Wild Productions to co-sponsor a project by the Division of State Parks and Reservoirs that will map the park with GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) technology.  New GPS maps will be made to highlight all of the park’s natural resources, public facilities, and resource management strategies.  Versailles State Park was one of eleven state parks chosen for this opportunity and will be the first to publish this information online for public use (GPS data will be extremely useful for hikers, campers, fishermen, and tourists).  Custom programming from students at the University of Oklahoma will also allow the server to manage databases used by the nature center staff and to process live weather data from the park’s weather stations. 

In November of 2002, the Director of the Department of Natural Resources approved a Wild Productions’ project to install weather stations at each Indiana State Park.  The stations will report weather data every five minutes to a central computing system that will produce and publish high-resolution graphics on the internet.  This group of weather stations, named the Indiana Mesonet (Mesonet is derived from a NETwork of weather stations on a MESOscale), will aide park visitors with forecasts and current conditions,  park staff for various management decisions, local community emergency managers and school districts during severe weather, meteorologists for research purposes, and the public for general weather observation.  The first tower is under construction at Versailles State Park while more funding is being acquired to complete the entire project statewide.  It is expected to start recording climatologically data of Versailles State Park on January 1, 2004, with the other state parks to follow within a year.  This data will also be available on the park’s new website and in your local library.

While technology can be an asset to nature center exhibits, resources, and operations, exposing visitors to the outdoors is also a very important asset of any nature center.  For the third summer, Wild Productions sponsored and hosted the popular “Masters of the Night – Hike” at Versailles State Park.  More than 140 people were in attendance for two hikes that included a custom slide show about the park’s nocturnal wildlife and lots of fun activities conducted on a custom trail for the program.  Other night hikes sponsored by Wild Productions included an “Owl Prowl” that took more than 70 guests into the dark Versailles woods for a unique and personal experience with the park’s Barred Owls.  In order to provide years of annual, outdoor education to the park’s visitors, a Butterfly Garden in the backyard of the nature center at Versailles was constructed.  Wildflowers were donated by Beaver Creek Nursery and planted by volunteers to produce a wonderful array of color and scents that have attracted dozens of butterflies.  The garden, once in full bloom, will be incorporated into weekly and daily programs offered by the naturalist at the nature center.

Since its beginning in 2000, each year has provided new challenges and produced exciting results for Versailles and Clifty Falls State Park Nature Centers.  Expect to see more advancement within the next few years at Versailles State Park as Wild Productions continues to grow and expand.  The new website is expected to go online for public use during the fall season of 2003.  Be sure to log on and check out all of the information and opportunities that await your next visit at your local Indiana State Park.