The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy will host the International Urban Parks Conference in September, a biennial gathering that is expected to attract about 400 parks professionals and advocates.

"Body and Soul: Urban Parks and the Health of Great Cities" will be held Sept. 21-23 at the Hilton Pittsburgh and will explore how parks support the physical, emotional, environmental and economic health of cities. It is co-sponsored by the City Parks Alliance and the National Association for Olmsted Parks.

The city was chosen because of the recent revitalization of its historic parks, guided by the conservancy, along with new riverfront parks and the city's emphasis on green development.

"This is a tremendous opportunity for Pittsburgh to share its green story with the rest of the world during the city's 250th birthday year," Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy President Meg Cheever said in a statement.

"Despite the economic challenges, a tremendous amount of work has been done to protect and improve our parks, not only by the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy and the city, but also by a host of organizations and individuals committed to our region's green spaces.

"The selection of Pittsburgh as the host for this conference is a testament to the success of those efforts."

With its parks and health theme, the conference will show how American parks are working with the public health community to promote active living.

It also will cover sustainable management, restoration of urban and historic natural areas, storm water management, coping with the impact of global warming, managing the balance of parks and automobile parking and other topics.

Keynote speakers are Teresa Heinz, chairwoman of the Heinz Endowments; Luis Garden Acosta, founder in 1982 of El Puente, a community human rights and environmental organization in Brooklyn; and Richard Louv, author of "Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder" and founder of the Children & Nature Network.

For more information, the conference Web site is www.urbanparks08.org.