As the country gears up to celebrate 100 years of our national parks, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune and his family are hitting the road for a taste of what America's public lands have to offer.
Mike, his wife Mary, and three children will wind their way from their home in California through the red rocks of Utah and down into Northern Arizona. Along the way they’ll do what many other families will do this summer-- hike, camp and spend quality family time together at our country’s amazing national parks and public lands. They'll also explore wild areas at risk that are in urgent need of protection, places like Utah’s canyon country and the forests (yes forests) in the highlands around the Grand Canyon.
Unfortunately, they're not likely to finish the trip without encountering the industrialization that is currently threatening these spectacular places. As they travel they’ll see pipelines cutting across the land, giant flames from oil and gas wells as they stargaze, and industrial drilling sites and uranium mines amidst the stunning views. Each is a reminder of the price our public lands pay for our addiction to dirty fuels and the continued need for action to ensure that future generations can experience the wonders of America’s great outdoors.
As for my family, we are beginning to plan for next summer, when we will travel cross-country to join in celebrations of the National Park System’s one hundred year anniversary.
Thanks to a new Every Kid in a Park initiative, more families will soon have the chance to do their own exploring of America’s public lands. Fourth graders across the country will get a pass that provides a whole year of free access for them and their families to get outdoors. For kids who don’t have parks in their communities, playgrounds, or safe places to experience nature this pass could open up a whole new world.
The Sierra Club, through our Inspiring Connections Outdoors program, ensures that 15,000 kids with limited access to nature have opportunities to connect with nature each year. And as part of the Every Kid in a Park initiative, the National Park Foundation will help provide transportation from schools in disadvantaged communities to public lands. Together with other groups and initiatives across the country we make sure that millions of children, from any background, explore and enjoy the places we treasure.
I urge all of you to follow the lead of the Brune family and celebrate our American public lands by getting out to enjoy them. Our American story has always been shaped by our conservation achievements. Be it, protecting hundreds of millions of acres of Wilderness, recovering wildlife from the brink of extinction, establishing iconic parks, or connecting new young people with nature nearby. Defending and expanding our public lands legacy ensures everyone has access to the wonder and restorative power of our great outdoors.