This 32-hour course includes:

• history, definition, and principles of interpretation
• making your programs purposeful, enjoyable, relevant, organized, and thematic
• using tangible objects to connect audiences to intangible ideas and universal concepts in interpretive programs
• presentation and communication skills
• certification requirements (open book exam; program outline; 10-min. presentation)
• all materials, workbook, and CIG course textbook

Requirements for the CIG Course
Anyone age 16 or over with a desire to increase their knowledge and skills related to interpretation may participate. Membership in NAI is not required, but NAI members may pay a discounted fee to participate in the program. You can also elect to take the training without becoming certified.

Interpretation Library
The texts used are:
Environmental Interpretation by Sam Ham;
Interpreting Our Heritage by Freeman Tilden;
Interpretation of Natural and Cultural Resources by Knudsen, Cable & Beck; Interpretation for the 21st Century by Beck & Cable;
Sharing Nature with Children by Joseph Cornell;
Interpreting for Park Visitors by Bill Lewis.

Cost and Registration
Download the registration form here (PDF).

Instructors
Mary Ann Bonnell,
City of Aurora Parks and Open Space Department
CIG, CHI, CIT, CIM, CIP
Mary Ann is the Senior Resource Specialist for City of Aurora Parks and Open Space Department. Mary Ann earned her degree in Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology from CU, Boulder in 1991. For the last 20 years, Mary Ann has used art, science, and enthusiasm to connect people of all ages to the natural world. Mary Ann earned the Enos Mills Award for Lifetime Achievement in Environmental Education in 2002 and the National Association for Interpretation’s National Master Front Line Interpreter Award in 2003.

Roxanne Brickell-Reardon,
Colorado State Parks
CIH, CIG, CIT
Roxanne began her career as a sixth-grade elementary teacher. Her outstanding environmental education work with students was recognized with a National Conservation Teacher of the Year Award in 1986. Roxanne moved on to extensive curriculum development and evaluation work after earning her master's degree in natural resources at Colorado State University. She was the Executive Director for Project Food, Land & People, a national preK-12 grade agro-environmental education curriculum project. In 1999, Roxanne was awarded the Enos Mills Lifetime Achievement Award. Roxanne has eleven years with Colorado State Parks as the Interpretation and Environmental Education Coordinator and Interpretive Specialist at Eldorado Canyon and Barr Lake state parks.

Linda Strand
CIG, CHI, CIP, CIT
Linda is a consultant working on land conservation and interpretation projects. She specializes in non-personal interpretation. Linda's degree is in Landscape Architecture from Colorado State University. She worked for the City of Aurora for over 30 years, establishing an open space network that included over 6,000 acres, 50 miles of trails, two reservoirs, and two nature centers. She is presently on the Board of the Audubon Society of Greater Denver and the Colorado Open Space Alliance. Linda is the Director of Region 7 for the National Association for Interpretation.

Further Information
For more information about the course, please contact Mary Ann Bonnell at mbonnell@ci.aurora.co.us or call 303.859.8911.