ZION CANYON FIELD INSTITUTE: WHERE INDUSTRY AND EDUCATION INTERSECT

Zion Canyon Field Institute is the educational arm of the non-profit Zion Natural History Association (ZNHA) in Zion National Park, Utah. Beside the already existing cooperative relationship between ZNHA and Zion National Park, Zion Canyon Field Institute (ZCFI) was conceived and implemented at the request of the administration of Zion National Park.

If ever there existed a more quintessential intersection between public lands, industry, and education, it would be difficult to fathom that model. The author will describe the working model of this intersection in its everyday incarnation at ZCFI.

Citing examples of instructors recruited from both the private industry and public education sectors, the author will share his assessment of why a field institute is such a perfect vehicle for melding partnerships between public lands agencies, industry, and education. From ZCFI's scheduled annual curriculum to its newly inaugurated lecture series, the field institute is rife with overlap and dove-tailing of the three entities.