RESEARCH IN OUR NATIONAL PARKS--EXPANDING FRONTIERS OF INVOLVEMENT

Adequate funding for meaningful research in the National Park Service (NPS) has been an ongoing challenge since the formation of the NPS in 1916, and in light of the long-term economic prognosis of our country’s fragile economy, little near-term relief from underfunding appears likely. Innovative collaboration with, and volunteerism by researchers has served the NPS well over the years to provide needed projects and research. This paper describes a proposed program that offers a first-hand introduction to research needs of parks administered by the NPS for a diverse group of researchers, in hopes of initiating needed work that would otherwise not be undertaken.

The program involves the NPS and the Honors College of the University of Arkansas, although the underlying rationale of collaboration with the NPS would be equally appropriate for most universities, government agencies, and other research centers. At Arkansas, students in the Honors College are required to write a Senior Honors Thesis, and thanks to generous funding by the Walton Family Trust, reasonable expenses related to field research are covered. Theses typically address a range of research problems from theoretical to applied, they typically require extensive field work, and they encompass disciplines ranging across park needs from geology, biology, ecology, mapping, and environmental, to social and political science, to policy and management. Utilizing the format of an 8-day field trip during spring break, the students are exposed to parks, monuments, historical sites, battlefields, and national rivers and seashores by scientists of the NPS. Meaningful, relevant problems at each site are presented in detail, and important contacts between each student and key NPS scientists are initiated. Research areas of focus are selected based on the proximity of NPS facilities (Four-Corners area; Virginia-Washington D.C.; Bay area-Sierras) so that transportation time is minimized and time spent understanding park needs is optimized. Prior to the field trip, colloquia and on-campus endeavors bring the students up-to-speed on problems, and at the conclusion of the class, research proposals are submitted. We share specific examples and case studies to document the sophistication of the research, and point to potential research and benefits that we hope will accrue.