Consulate and Alumni Association Organize National Parks Conference for Earth Day

April 22, 2008

National parks conference participants stand in front of Earth Day commemorative posters at the start of the conference (photo Susan Parker-Burns)

Three alumni of the State Department’s International Visitor program were among the key organizers of a two-day conference on parks management and sustainable tourism at Magurski National Park in southern Poland held on April 21 and 22.  The conference, co-sponsored by the State Department Alumni Association in Poland and the U.S. Mission in Poland, brought park directors and staff, NGOs, local government officials, business and European parks representatives together to examine ways of improving park services and managing the flow of tourists while minimizing the environmental impact of increased tourism.  Rocky Mountain National Park Director Vaughn Baker shared his expertise on building community-park cooperation and developing a public relations strategy for parks.  Rocky Mountain Park signed a sister park agreement in 2007 with Tatra National Park Poland and Slovakia. 
Conference participants were astounded at the number of volunteers who work in American parks.  One Polish park, Tatra National Park, has begun their own volunteer program modeled on that of Rocky Mountain, and other parks are in the planning stages for similar volunteer programs.  Discussion also focused on the use of public transportation in parks to minimize the environmental impact from cars.  While issues such as conservation and access for tourists were at times contentious, the participants agreed that American parks offered many valuable management and educational programs to emulate.