Read the details of winners of the 2006 National Trails Awards or download a PowerPoint (4.09 mb) with photos of the award winners.

American Trails 19th National Trails Awards Celebration Banquet ~ On the Path of Excellence

	American Trails Board members present Terry Eastin the 2006 National "Trails and Health" Award for her innovative work on the Medical Mile in Little Rock, Arkansas

Date: Monday, November 17
Time: 7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with Registration ($35.00 for guests)

The National Trails Awards is one way American Trails recognizes the exemplary people across the landscape of America who are working to create a national system of trails to meet the recreation, health, and travel needs of all Americans. American Trails will honor outstanding efforts made by agencies, trail professionals, the private sector, corporations, media, and others at the American Trails 19th National Trails Awards Celebration Banquet.

Help us celebrate the 40-Year Anniversary of the National Trails System Act. The Keynote for the evening will be Steve Elkinton. Steve has served as the National Trails System Program Leader in the Washington Office of the National Park Service since 1989. He has been intimately involved with developing and implementing policy relating to National Scenic and Historic Trails, and in recommending changes to the Act. No one speaks more eloquently to the history of the National Trails System Act and how it has influenced the trails movement today

Award categories & criteria

Trail Advocacy Award: (1 award per State, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico):
Nominee(s) must have demonstrated successful efforts to influence public policy relating to trail planning, trail protection, trail development, or maintenance.

Trail Worker Award: (1 award per State, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico): Nominee must have made outstanding contributions and provided consistent support for trail planning, development, or maintenance. This award is intended to recognize the commitment and efforts of a private or public sector individual in working for enhanced trail recreation in their local area or state.

Best Trails State Award (new this year): This award recognizes a state which is facilitating an outstanding statewide system of trails. The nomination should address any aspects that have led to the establishment of the statewide trails network including master planning, legislation, funding, and program implementation. The nomination should also include specific projects, plans, policies and/or initiatives that have furthered establishment and expansion of the trails network during the past two years. (Once a state wins, it will not be eligible for nomination again until after two successive awards cycles or a minimum of four years have passed.)

Trails for Health Award: The award recognizes a community's commitment to improving access to trails and promoting their use and importance for increasing physical activity. The award is for commitment to long term change through community design, trail planning, heightened awareness of active community environments, physical activity promotion, and increased trail use.

Lifetime Service Award: For an individual demonstrating longstanding, significant, and exemplary service to trails planning, implementation, and recreation.

Partnership Award: The partnership must have benefited agencies or services within the field of trail planning, design, or implementation. The partnership can be between private organizations, public agencies, or public and private interests. The partnership must have contributed toward positive public exposure for the field of trail planning, design, or implementation.

Trails Public Service Award: The nominee must work for an agency and may hold an elected or appointed office at the federal, state, or local level and must have demonstrated significant and consistent support of trail planning, design, or implementation through strong leadership and/or legislative efforts. The nominee may be a paid employee or a volunteer.

Community Service Award (new this year): This honors a trail organization that performs exceptional community service relating to but beyond trail work per se. This service could include actions or projects that contribute to making their communities better places to live, improve the natural environment, support worthy causes, and/or demonstrate in other ways preeminent volunteerism.

Outstanding Media Award: Nominee(s) must have demonstrated significant and sustained efforts to provide positive public exposure and education in the field of trail use, planning, design, or implementation. The nominee must have demonstrated a willingness and receptiveness to provide free public service exposure about trails.

Trails and the Arts Award: The award recognizes outstanding public art projects, interpretive signs, or other creative structures associated with trail related improvements.

Planning/Design Award: Nominee(s) must have demonstrated problem solving through innovative methods on a trail project. The project must have included successful aspects of public participation and/or public agency involvement and have been planned to enhance the recreational trails opportunities within the project area.

Corporate Award: A business or corporation must have demonstrated significant, sustained, and exemplary service to trails planning, implementation, and/or recreation.

State-of-the-Art Technology Award: The award recognizes a trails-related product, process, or service that has significantly met a need, addressed an issue, or increased efficiency in trail design, development, or maintenance.

Outstanding Trail Sharing Award: The award recognizes innovative and successful trail sharing efforts, programs, and systems.

New Award: We will also be awarding the first ever American Trails’ Developer Recognition Awards. This new program will recognize quality, well-designed multi-use trails systems that are integrated into private developments.

Read the details of winners of the 2006 National Trails Awards

American Trails, P.O. Box 491797, Redding, CA 96049-1797 • (530) 547-2060
• Fax: (530) 547-2035 • Symposium@americantrails.org • www.AmericanTrails.org