‘A Great Year for ‘Mountain People”

The National Park Service’s announcement of a $2.2 million grant to “A Great Day for Mountain People” will support efforts to ensure the cultural and natural heritage value of the national parks are preserved.
The National Park Foundation, which supports the grant, says that it will help support the establishment of a National Park Museum, to include exhibits on the life and works of legendary explorer Robert Falcon Scott, as well as an ongoing and expanding conservation effort in the Appalachian Mountains.
The NPS is also partnering with the National Endowment for the Arts to help finance a national series of arts and cultural programs to be offered at its parks across the country, the foundation said.
“Our parks serve our communities, and it’s important to support programs that inspire and educate our visitors,” said National Park Superintendent Dan Ashe.
“We’re proud to support efforts like this to provide important cultural and historic assets to our communities.”
The National Parks Foundation announced the grant in September 2016, which will support a number of programs that will help ensure “that the parks remain open and welcoming to visitors, while preserving and protecting the heritage and natural resources of the nation’s national parks,” according to the news release.
The foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works to promote public land management and preservation, promote science and technology, promote conservation, and promote stewardship of the environment.
The Park Service was also recently awarded $1 million in support of an initiative to improve access to national parks by promoting educational outreach and educational programming at all levels.
The funds were announced through the National Parks and Recreation Act of 2017, which aims to “increase public access to parks and wildlife habitat and the value and importance of their ecosystems for all people,” the news statement said.