Alex Cote Alex Cote is the Playworker at Riverdale Country School (RCS) in New York. Alex joined RCS after working as a playworker in US adventure playgrounds for many years with her longest position being at Ithaca Children's Garden's "Hands-on-Nature Anarchy Zone" where she was lead playworker for several years. She found playwork through an initial interest in playground design, but she has since been completely captivated by playwork's focus on the deeper issues of children's lives, thanks in large part to connections built by Pop-Up Adventure Play across the country. To this end, she is as likely to be found with a child climbing a tree on the playground as she is at the front of a room

This community Pop Up Adventure Playground is open to children from all around the CU area! As KOOP hosts our Prioritizing Play Conference, we want to show them what adventure play looks like! We'll bring our materials like cardboard, fabric, tubes, clips and maybe even paint! You bring your kiddos for a no-cost free-play event! When: 12:30-2:30 Where: Washington Park After the event, we continue the community gathering by opening the last 3 hours of our conference to registrants from the community for a special curated event: CU For Play.

Join us Friday, May 4 at 7pm as we screen ‘The Land’. This evening event is open to the public, and included in the agenda for the Prioritizing Play Conference. After the short documentary, named after an adventure playground in Wales, there will be a panel discussion including conference speakers. Childcare provided for parents interested in viewing and discussing this impressive short film. Location is at the Spurlock Museum- a short walk from the Illini Union. Filmed in 2015, this documentary short by Erin Davis follows several children as they navigate and create an adventure playground. Showing free play with hammers, saws and fire, Erin Davis’s work has been called “a must-see for an

CU For Play takes place during a larger Prioritizing Play Conference. You’re invited to celebrate and learn more about children’s play at the Illini Union May 5th from 2:45pm-6:30pm. This is the final event of our Prioritizing Play Conference, and parents will hear from professionals busy advocating for children’s play in communities around the world. With a combination of panel discussions, workshops and presentations, all following a public pop- up play event from 1230-2:30, this special offering inside our larger conference is geared towards our local community in an effort to share these world- renowned speakers in a more accessible way. Children will have access to self-directed staffed