U.S. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE INITIATIVES TO PROMOTE GEOHERITAGE AND GEODIVERSITY

National Park Service (NPS) Conservation Assistance Programs (CAP’s) can help promote Geoheritage (GH) and Geodiversity (GD) initiatives, in particular, National Heritage Areas (NHAs), National Natural Landmarks (NNLs), National Register of Historic Places and World Heritage Site programs. Additionally, NPS CAP’s for planning, design and management assistance such as the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) program and various cultural and historical preservation programs could also promote GH. GH resources also could be promoted through grants from historic and cultural programs. The conceptPreservation partnerships are likely to be successful when a bottom-up approach is used and grassroots organizations are the major proponents of promoting a specific geoheritage area; the roles of successful examples will be showcased (Nature Conservancy, Land Trust Alliance, Landscape Conservation Cooperatives, Conservation Fund, Trust for Public Land, etc.). This presentation will discuss these mechanisms, supply URLs and NPS contacts and bring awareness to these initiatives.