Parks Stewardship Forum

In this "Letter from Woodstock," our columnist looks at the damage done to the National Park System by chronic underfunding from Congress.

Human-caused climate change has caused extensive tree mortality across West Africa and the western United States and biome shifts around the world. Reducing excessive material consumption by people offers a solution to halt climate change and risks to trees.

An introduction to and summary of the set of theme papers featured in this issue, titled "Politics, practice and the management of living landscapes."

During the first years of Covid, 2020–2023, a group of seven colleagues across three continents—working outside of institutional contexts—prepared a Practice Note on naturecultures. The Practice Note draws together the long-time work, experience, and thinking of the authors, all of whom work in the field of heritage conservation. It gives focus to the improved integration of nature and culture, and cultural heritage and natural heritage, in the work of caring for and safeguarding important places. By promoting awareness of diversity and mutual respect for multiple views and understandings, the Practice Note is concerned with working together, fostering dialogue, and creating long-lasting and equitable approaches to conservation. In this introduction, we outline the purpose, origins, and the making of the Practice Note.

During the first years of Covid, 2020–2023, a group of seven colleagues across three continents—working outside of institutional contexts—prepared a Practice Note on naturecultures. The Practice Note draws together the long-time work, experience, and thinking of the authors, all of whom work in the field of heritage conservation. It gives focus to the improved integration of nature and culture, and cultural heritage and natural heritage, in the work of caring for and safeguarding important places. By promoting awareness of diversity and mutual respect for multiple views and understandings, the Practice Note is concerned with working together, fostering dialogue, and creating long-lasting and equitable approaches to conservation.

This paper explores strategies to promote sustainable tourism for people living in natural areas through a case study implemented in the renowned World Natural Heritage Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area, a World Heritage Site inscribed for its natural values. The study is part of the UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Program’s Chinese Pilot Studies. Various interventions, including understanding local values, revitalizing traditional handicrafts, and making culinary innovations, were implemented to enrich tourist experiences, empower local communities, and boost economic opportunities. Based on these interventions, this paper discusses community capacity building, stakeholder engagement, and conflict resolution as initiatives to enhance heritage conservation and promote sustainable tourism at the community level. On the level of the World Heritage property, a new management zone, the Traditional Eco-agricultural Heritage Zone, recognized the residency of the locals within the heritage site and fostered the harmonious co-existence of culture and nature. The successful integration of heritage conservation, community development, and sustainable tourism in Wulingyuan not only ensures the conservation of the site but also contributes to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This case study offers a model for sustainable development of Natural World Heritage Sites, emphasizing the importance of respecting and involving diverse local communities.

An interview with the author of the recent book "Rescuing the Planet: Protecting Half the Land to Heal the Earth."

Rural landscapes make up a significant percentage of the planet’s lands and waterways and must be included in any efforts to address climate change and habitat loss. However, the contribution of these landscapes to cultural heritage and nature conservation is not always appreciated. While there are multiple international designation programs and state-sponsored heritage landscape initiatives, these have a relatively small impact around the globe. This is also true for international programs that attempt to take a holistic perspective to conserving rural heritage. There are some promising community-based and collaborative programs in Australia and the United States, although in both countries, overall agricultural policies are not supportive of these approaches. The lack of recognition of cross-disciplinary practices is a barrier to integrated land management as is the failure to understand that a key factor is the role of people and their relationship with the land. The challenge is how to reach out and incorporate culture and natural heritage into the larger field of land policy and conservation practice.

This article explores the origins of how NPS manages First Amendment activities in National Capital Parks, concentrating on developments in the 1960s and 1970s. It outlines the emergence of regulations over time, as the agency has sought to reconcile the historical and cultural values of National Capital Parks with the value they hold for civic engagement.

In this paper we focus on the pressing need to effectively engage with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) and the need to strengthen the capacity of rangers originating from these communities. Opportunities for full participation and leadership by IPLCs are improved by enhancing the role of Indigenous and local rangers in fostering relationships while integrating cultural knowledge into the work on the ground. This also strengthens local benefits. We emphasize the invaluable contribution of IPLCs to conservation, often honed over generations, and explore current models of partnership and engagement. Particularly, we spotlight the vital role of IPLC rangers, who leverage unique skills, local knowledge, and cultural practices in their conservation work. The roles of both IPLCs and local Indigenous rangers are essential if we are to meet our goals for conserving 30% of the earth’s lands and waters by 2030 as promoted at the COP15 meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), achieve the objectives for development of IPLC rangers as stated of Chitwan Declaration of 2019 (CD), or meet the related targets set by the Universal Ranger Support Alliance (URSA). We advocate for a partnership model with IPLCs that applies the principles of Collective Impact to improve outcomes and secure enduring benefits at all levels. To aid stakeholders in conservation projects involving IPLCs (including governments, businesses, and non-governmental organizations), we propose a straightforward summary framework that outlines stages for the development of relationships and projects. It integrates the work of others, including foundation principles, management systems for partnerships, and good practices, and stresses the need for pre-project training, learning and other forms of preparation. Altogether, these principles and accompanying recommendations help lay the groundwork for effective intergenerational projects involving IPLCs with long-term benefits.

The first set of parks created by the United States government under uniform administration was a set of Civil War battlefields under the control of the War Department, or Army. The first battlefield parks were created in the 1890s and expanded into a much larger system stretching across the country. The Army developed these parks with visitor facilities and extensive memorials and monuments. In 1933 the entire system was transferred to the National Park Service and became part of the national park system. These units had been sought by the Park Service to expand the geographical and thematic diversity of its holdings. This work explores the creation of this system by the Army and what has happened to these units after their absorption into the park system. While most were expanded and became more typical park units, others were removed from the system, leaving two in their original condition.

Applied research aims to generate knowledge that can be used to improve policy and practice. In the field of visitor use management (VUM), researchers and park managers seek to generate knowledge regarding specific dimensions of visitor experiences within and across parks and other kinds of protected areas. A wide variety of management-centric questions are addressed through VUM research. In this article, we argue that to answer such questions, VUM researchers and managers can use qualitative methods (independent of or coupled with quantitative methods) to deepen our knowledge about visitor experiences while improving visitor use management policies and practices. We present current qualitative research designed to aid in the management of parks, and future directions for qualitative inquiry. Existing qualitative research and future possibilities call to expand our collective understanding of what kind of knowledge “counts” in VUM research.

This visual essay highlights four national parks where the impacts of climate change are well-documented and visually compelling (Everglades, Mesa Verde, Joshua Tree, and Mount Rainier). In drawing attention to these visible climate impacts and effectively interpreting the changes in situ, the park service can play a key role in clarifying the issue of climate change for the American public. Park managers and other park professionals have undoubtedly identified locations in their own management units offering similar opportunities to engage visitors in the science of climate change (either through on-site signage or ranger-led programs). The photographs comprising this visual essay, taken over eight weeks of fieldwork from 2017 to 2024, are intended to spark ideas and move the conversation forward.

A poem in the "Verse in Place" section of Parks Stewardship Forum.