Advancing the National Park Idea

As I mentioned in a post last week, the Howard Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy will be holding meetings this week to discuss a recent report on the future of the National Park System. The report was the final product of the National Parks Second Century Commission.

We have more details about the two-day meetings.

Today
The Baker Center along with the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), will bring together about 100 leaders from around the country to study the commission’s findings and begin looking at ways to implement its recommendations.

Attendance at the conference is by invitation only, however, the public is invited to view a webcast from 8:30am-12:30pm EST.

Members of the public can use this link to access the webcast from their personal computers and watch members of the Second Century Commission present their report recommendations about the future of the national parks in areas of: park system expansion; natural and cultural resources; education and engagement; sustainable funding. Participants can send in comments via webcast.

If you experience any problems with this webcast link please contact Mr. Justin Johnson, ITES at justincjohnson@utk.edu or 865-974-8281.

You can access an on-line version of the report at www.visionfortheparks.org.

The Second Century Commission Reports can be found here: Link 1 Link 2

On-line survey: The public is also being asked to participate in an on-line survey so that additional information about the level of support for commission recommendations can be gathered. This information will be a very effective tool for identifying support and resources to policy-makers and other decision leaders as they move into the implementation phase of the process. Here's the link to the survey.

The webcast will be archived on the Baker Center website and can be viewed by people that miss the live webcast. The website also has links to the report, and the survey. Data from the survey will be collected and stored in a database at University of Tennessee.

On Thursday
Commissioners Denis Galvin, Former Deputy Director of the National Park Service, and Stephen H. Lockhart, MD, PhD and Chairman of the Board of the Yosemite National Institutes will lead public dialogue about how the Commission's recommendations relate to the parks in the region. The event will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the Toyota Auditorium of the Baker Center (1640 Cumberland Ave; Knoxville, TN). The event is free and open to the public.


Jeff
Smoky Mountain Rental Cabins Cabin and chalet listings for the Smokies.