Tennessee Riverline: Vision and Action Powered by Partnerships - 1.25 PDH (LA CES/HSW)

Brad Collett is an Associate Professor in the University of Tennessee Department Plant Sciences and School of Landscape Architecture. His teaching, research and creative activity center on regional water resource stewardship through landscape planning and performance. Brad was a 2016 U.S. Fulbright Scholar to Slovenia, and is a licensed landscape architect. He is Director of the Tennessee RiverLine Partnership. This regional consortium collaborates with UT Knoxville and TVA, as well as UT students and the Tennessee River Studio under his leadership, to realize the transformative, multi-generational vision for North America’s next great regional trail system.

Nans is a Senior Associate at SCAPE and an advocate for excellence in community and stakeholder engagement, for which he brings particular expertise in addressing social and environmental justice through design. Nans leads several large-scale urban design and planning projects for SCAPE and has also played a key role in developing the firm’s exhibition design efforts. He is currently project manager for the Chattahoochee RiverLands Greenway Study, a 100-mile trail system running through the Metro Atlanta region; the Hayward Shoreline Master Plan in the Bay Area; and for the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s (CPRA) 2023 Coastal Master Plan.

Gerry is an Air Force vet, social artist, public health advocate, photojournalist, paddlesports instructor & founder Explore Kentucky. Explore Kentucky is a Black-owned social enterprise dedicated to inspiring Kentuckians and visitors to engage in an active lifestyle fueled by outdoor adventure. He serves as Outdoor Recreation Roundtable’s Together Outdoors Coalition Lead. Together Outdoors provides a cross-sector collaborative learning space for organizations, individuals, business leaders, federal agencies, activists, manufacturers and service providers who share a commitment to making the outdoors a more welcoming, safe, and enjoyable place for people of all races, ethnicities, abilities, faiths, identities, genders, orientations, and backgrounds. Gerry uses a creative placemaking approach to advance inclusive outdoor recreation principles, invigorate citizen stewardship of natural environments, promote environmental literacy, and sustainable tourism. He is a founding member of Kentucky Rural - Urban Exchange and the American Canoe Association’s (ACA) Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Initiatives.

Cathy Barnard is a branding and communications consultant and board member for the Chattahoochee National Park Conservancy (CNPC), the official Friends group of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA). CNPC supports park initiatives and promotes stewardship of natural and cultural resources for CRNRA's 15 park units along 48 miles of the Chattahoochee River in Metro Atlanta. A longtime National Park Service volunteer and certified Master Naturalist, Cathy is an advocate for conservation and inclusive access for public lands and a member of the stakeholder advisory group for Chattahoochee RiverLands and Johns Creek’s Recreation and Parks Advisory Committee.

Dr. Carolyn Barske Crawford is the director of the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area - a National Park Service funded program housed at the University of North Alabama. Her work with the MSNHA is focused on preserving, protecting, and interpreting the natural, cultural, and historical resources of northwest Alabama. She also partners on recreation projects related to trail development, outdoor education, and park expansions in the six counties of the MSNHA and across the region. Crawford holds a Ph.D. in US History from UMASS Amherst.