M I L E S T O N E S

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s we close the 20132014 business year, we
thank you and reect on the many milestones
and victories made possible by the support of
park philanthropists like you. This report highlights but
a small selection of our accomplishments over the past
12 monthsour attempt to illustrate the impact of your
investment in National Parks Conservation Association
(NPCA) as the leading voice for Americas national parks.
Your gifts are building a legacy that will benet
NPCA and the nation for generations to come. As you
read this report, we hope you take pleasure and nd
satisfaction in the role you have played in transforming
the national parks and enriching lives.
We have fallen heirs to the most glorious
heritage a people ever received, and each
one must do his part if we wish to show that
the nation is worthy of its good fortune.
Theodore Roosevelt
26th U.S. President
Keeping You in Touch
with the Power of
Your Philanthropy
National Mall & Memorial Parks creed/ISTOCKPHOTO The Urban Wilderness Canoe Adventure on the Anacostia River Ed Stierli /NPCA
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NPCA latest achievements include:
B Pressed Congress to renew Great
Lakes restoration funding through
our leadership in the Healing Our
Waters Coalition. Funding
will protect the Great Lakes from
invasive species, pollution and toxic
chemicals, and restore wetlands in
and around the regions nine
national parks.
B Fueled by our advocacy, the state
of Florida and National Park Service
committed funds for the next span
of bridging the Tamiami Trail. Tis
project is critical to restoring
Everglades freshwater ow for marine
wildlife and nesting colonies of birds.
B Persuaded EPA to analyze the
impacts of industrial mining near
Lake Clark National Park and
Preserve. Te EPAs ndings
triggered protective action and
temporarily halted permitting
of a massive copper and gold mine
that threatens Alaskas legendary
Bristol Bay salmon run.
B Applauded the National Park
Services nal winter-use rule for
Yellowstone National Park that limits
snowmobile and snow coach use,
something NPCA has actively
supported for more than a decade.
Tis victory will signicantly reduce
air and noise pollution in Americas
rst national park.
B Celebrated the decision by the
Tennessee Valley Authority to close
eight coal-red power plants, yet
another result of an historic 2011
agreement with one of the nations
biggest users of coal for electricity
generation. NPCA, along with its
partners, have toiled for years for
cleaner air and a healthier environ-
ment in southeastern states. As a result,
air quality has visibly improved in the
Great Smoky Mountains.
B Witnessed the largest run of Chinook
salmon in decades following removal
of the Elwha Dam on the Elwha
River. Salmonand other sh that
mature in the ocean and return to
rivers to spawnonce again have
access to spawning and rearing
habitat, much of it within Olympic
National Park.
B Stopped a proposed pipeline that
would have drawn billions of gallons
of water in and around Great Basin
National Park and piped it nearly
300 miles south to Las Vegas.
B Successfully advocated for BP oil spill
restoration dollars to benet Floridas
Gulf Island National Seashore.
B Bolstered by NPCAs long-time
advocacy, 16 southwestern national
parks and wilderness areas will
benet from improved air quality
thanks to the closure of three units
of the Four Corners Power Plant,
the single largest source of nitrogen
oxide pollution in the country.
Restoring Clean Air and Water
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lean air and water give life to our national parks. These
resources are necessary to all life forms, and the threats they
face are not contained within the boundaries of national
parks. NPCA recognizes that the health of national parks, as well as the
people, wildlife, and plant life living within and around them, is directly
linked to the health of the air and water in surrounding areas.
NPCA continues to address these issues on all fronts, and from
the Great Basin to the Great Smoky Mountains, the health of water
and air in and around our national parks is improving due to
NPCAs dedication.
In wilderness is
the preservation
of the world.
Henry David Thoreau
Author, poet and philosopher
Everglades National Park Brian Lasenby Dreamstime.com
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Strengthening park funding, providing
meaningful opportunities for youth,
supporting a healthier and more
interconnected citizenry, and preserv-
ing places that reect our diverse
national experience will expand what
our parks oer as well as the very idea
of what a national park can be.
NPCAs latest projects include:
B Raised awareness about impacts
on national parks and the economy
when the federal government shut
its doors after Congress failed to
pass a budget last October. As the
parks became front-page national
news, NPCA led the way by
communicating a clear, consistent,
and informed voice of support for
our national parks, the rangers who
protect them, and the communities
that rely on them. Our award-win-
ning Keep Parks Open campaign
eectively used the crisis to build
support for opening and funding
our national parks for the long term.
B Conducted youth advocacy work-
shops in Florida, California, and
Maryland to advance civic engage-
ment among young leaders.
B Spearheaded a pioneer transporta-
tion program to help increase access
for Homesteads diverse communi-
ties to Everglades and Biscayne
National Parks. Te free trolley
service oers public transportation
to these iconic parks that had been
out of reach for many visitors and
area residents.
B Formed a national council of young
leaders to serve as advisors and
ambassadors to NPCA on behalf
of young adults, aged 18-34.
B Worked with state and national
lawmakers to successfully introduce
legislation in both houses of Congress
to create a new urban national park in
Chicago. As Chicagos rst national
park, the Pullman National Historical
Park would protect and represent the
important story surrounding
Americas rst planned model
industrial town and the site of the
famous Pullman Strike and progress
toward modern labor rights for the
African-American community.
B Led a national campaign that
restored more than $150 million
to the National Park Service, which
will help reduce the damage that
the broken budgeting process has
inicted on our national parks.
B Produced a Design-Tinking
Toolkit to help the National Park
Service and its partners share creative
and innovative ideas and solutions
to complex park challenges and help
visitors nd broader meaning in the
park experience.
Strengthening the National Parks
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ust as national parks face environmental challenges
unimagined a century ago, so too have their funding and
civic obligations grown more complex. As the national
parks enter their second century, it is critical that they become more
relevant to new and diverse audiences and reect the whole of our
nations history. NPCA values the importance of diversity of back-
ground, story, and place.
There is no better route to civic understanding
than visiting our national parks. Theyre who
we are and where weve been.
Sandra Day OConnor
Associate Justice, Retired
U.S. Supreme Court Homestead National Parks Trolley Al Diaz
M I L E S T O N E S
Spade Fish NPS
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NPCAs latest successes in this area
include:
B Gained signicant wilderness
protection for Sleeping Bear Dunes
National Lakeshore in Michigan. Te
designationthe highest protection
aorded a public land and the rst in
ve yearsis the result of more than
20 years of work. It preserves visitor
access and hunting and shing
opportunities, while protecting the
fragile dunes, blus, and forests.
B Led the eort to successfully nalize
the Whitesh Range Partnership,
setting the stage for an important
protected wildlife corridor linking
wild lands from Glacier National
Park northward to Ban.
B Worked with the Wyoming legisla-
ture to allow Grand Teton National
Park to acquire two 640-acre
inholdings owned by the state school
trust. Te bill allows the trust to
trade the park land for parcels of
equal worth elsewhere in the state.
B Joined forces with the Civil War
Trust to protect several acres at the
western gateway to Harpers Ferry
National Historical Park through a
successful public-private partnership.
Te purchase was nanced by federal
funds, a gift from an anonymous
donor, and a number of smaller private
donations. Te acquired land played a
signicant role in the September 1862
Battle of Harpers Ferry.
B Supported a court ruling that
armed the marine wilderness
designation for Drakes Estero, the
ecological heart of the Point Reyes
National Seashore and only marine
wilderness area on the West Coast.
Te order denied a preliminary
injunction challenging the Secretary
of the Interiors decision, defended
by NPCA, to let Drakes Bay Oyster
Companys permit for commercial
oyster farming at Point Reyes expire
on its own terms.
B Improved and restored habitat for
Yellowstones northern pronghorn
herd by removing fences that inhibit
their migration between Yellowstone
and their wintering grounds in
Montanas Paradise Valley.
Protecting Park Lands and Wildlife
O

ur national parks and surrounding areas provide some
of the best, and sadly some of the last, remaining habitats
for countless species. These lands, and the wildlife that
rely on them, are constantly in jeopardy due to nearby develop-
ment, pollution, recreational uses, and other human activities.
NPCA remains dedicated to protecting the landscapes and wildlife
from these threats.
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Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Mark Vandyke Dreamstime.com
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore 2007 Michael Westhoff/ISTOCKPHOTO

M I L E S T O N E S
A Shared Sense
of Purpose
Your investment in NPCA helps
restore, protect and strengthen
Americas greatest treasures.
Please continue your generous
support of our work.
Thank You!
www.npca.org/tfp
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