Pease Park Interpretive Planning
An interpretive plan is a strategic document that helps guide an organization when sharing the stories of a space. It offers guidance on programming, educational opportunities, and ways to engage visitors with the deeper interpretation of a space.
Pease Park Conservancy partnered with PARD and specialists from MuseWork and RECLAIM to create the Pease Park Interpretive Plan in 2019. This plan explores the meanings and implications behind the cultural, historical, and geological histories of the park and the impacts we can have on the park and the environment.
Temas identificados para el Plan Interpretativo del Parque Pease
Tema 1
El Parque Pease es un lugar que revela las maravillas del mundo natural y las intersecciones y tensiones de nuestro lugar en evolución dentro de él.
Tema 2
El Parque Pease es emblemático de la injusticia racial y económica en Austin y presenta una oportunidad única para reconocer nuestra historia de esclavitud, segregación y exclusión con el fin de crear un espacio público acogedor y accesible para todos.
Tema 3
El Parque Pease es un tesoro natural que nos pertenece a todos, y su cuidado forma parte de nuestro patrimonio.
Interpretive Plan Implementation
Pease Park Conservancy has initially focused resources on the implementation of Theme Two of the interpretive plan. In 2021, the Conservancy worked with Civic Arts on a community engagement project to understand how to effectively share the history of Black enslavement, segregation, and exclusion on the land that is now Pease Park through programming, signage, and events.
In 2024, the Conservancy received a grant from the City of Austin Heritage Tourism Division to fund a project researching and sharing the history of Black people as it relates to the land that is now Pease Park. In partnership with Black Austin Tours and Art Is Cool, the history of people enslaved by Governor Elisha Pease and the Freedom Communities that emerged in the area after emancipation will be shared with the community through an annual RISE: Freedom Communities Festival and Pease Park History Tours (beginning in the fall of 2025).
