Podcast Ep. 34 - Parks and outdoors as sources of population and economic growth with Chelsea Lerud from Iowa Travel Industry Partners

We've all seen the impact our parks and public lands have on the people in our communities. But how many people do those parks bring to the community from somewhere else? How many new residents chose to move to your community because those places existed?

We also know how much our parks make in direct revenue. But what's the real economic impact to our community? To the state?

In this episode, I talk with Chelsea Lerud, Executive Director of Iowa Travel Industry Partners, about the economics of parks and outdoor recreation, the effort to highlight those spaces as a means to grow Iowa's population, and more.


As parks and conservation professionals, we need to recognize that our work goes far beyond the boundaries of the lands and facilities we manage. What we do has serious economic impacts far beyond just the revenue we generate from our facilities. My hope is that this episode makes that clearer.


As always, thanks for everything you do out there!


Links from the episode:

Bureau of Economic Analysis - Outdoor Recreation Satellite Account (ORSA) - Iowa

Iowa Travel Industry Partners

iTIP Economic Impact Calculator

Travel Iowa Economic Impact Report


Listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts, which is likely one of these platforms:


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