Alliance of National Heritage Areas

What is the mission of a Non-Profit for non-profits. To create and enhance strategic links among the Congressionally designated National Heritage Areas, emerging heritage areas, and Private non-profit governmental organizations associated with heritage development.

Goals of Organization To educate key constituencies, including communities and the public-at-large, about success and opportunities associated with heritage development in the areas of: natural resource conservation, historic preservation, community revitalization, economic development, recreation enhancement, the arts, folk life, education interpretation.

How will they do this? Develop educational conferences, programs and workshops concerning heritage development. Heritage Development Institute To create and maintain a federal platform for all heritage areas upon which both collective and individual issues are articulated. Best Practices To encourage the formation of local, private, state and federal partnerships in the field of heritage development. Annual Meetings

Private Sector development To develop and support entrepreneurial activities with the private sector in support of sustainable heritage development. The organization can develop entrepreneurial activities in the private sector. Examples: Heritage Development Institute Liz Madison Consortium for the Organizational Sustainability Planning Project

Heritage Development Institute Heritage Development 101: How to get started. Fundraising and Development: Leveraging private, local, state and federal resources. The Process and Politics of Partnerships Heritage Area Management Planning Telling Your Story: Interactive Interpretive programming Organizational Development Getting your Message Out: Advocacy and government relations The Heritage Development Institute workshops are designed to meet the expectations and needs of the customer and they can be developed for either half, full or multiple day workshops.

Heritage Development Institute Basics and Advanced Heritage Area workshop courses are available to advance a locally or region's knowledge, understanding and advocacy of heritage area development, and to advance the skills and knowledge of existing and potential areas in organizational development, partnership collaboration, marketing and heritage area programs, events and publications. Members of the Heritage Development Institute Faculty are current or past Presidents and Directors of successful National Heritage Areas and they have significant experience in the field of Heritage Development. All faculty members lead topic-specific sessions and discussions and facilitate dialogue on a variety of heritage development issues. Participants enjoy a working lunch with the faculty members and receive a binder of information and resources for their use. Institute Faculty include National Heritage Area executive directors, National Park Service staff, and nationally-recognized professionals in heritage development. Augie Carlino, President & CEO, Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area Dan Rice, President & CEO, Ohio and Erie Canal Corridor Coalition Dayton Sherrouse, Executive Director, Augusta Canal National Heritage Area Carroll Van West, Director, Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area

Provides credible meaningful content available to members Projects and initiatives of the Alliance and the Partnership provide resources to members, partners and the public on how heritage areas work, how they succeed, and how their success is being measured and evaluated. Released by Congressional Research Service. CRS Report Evaluations: An Important Component to National Heritage Areas Each authorized National Heritage Area completes a Management Plan, which is approved locally and by the Secretary of the Interior. It serves as the framework for actions by the management entity over the initial 15-year authorization period.

Members Directors of NHA No staff of the NPS. This would be a conflict of interest although they can be participants and educators. Mix of non-profit and for-profit individuals. This presents the obvious close connection between the government supported and the private tourism industry interests.

Why do you care? Information available at times from the consortium that is not displayed by the individual NHA. Monitor what the issues of greatest importance to the NHA organizations. Match the rhetoric of National Park Service and the Alliance of National Heritage Areas.