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Over a decade ago, an explorer conducting surveys at Grand Canyon National Park noticed what appeared to be an opening in a red rock cliff face high above him in the park’s remote backcountry. His team discovered a cave that appeared, by all accounts, to have been completely untouched by people. Researchers found a series of passageways with gypsum formations and a variety of wildlife, including thousands and thousands of mummified bats.
In episode 4 of the podcast, we talked with several experts about this remarkable cave and its ancient remains. Since then, researchers have returned and ventured into a second cave, even more difficult to explore than the first, and made more exciting discoveries.
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks Carol Chambers, professor of wildlife ecology at Northern Arizona University; Shawn Thomas, volunteer caver and bat expert; and Stephen Eginoire, photojournalist. We learn about the implications for science, the extreme lengths the team takes to preserve the cave, and profound feeling of being the first person to set foot in an unmapped place.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 43, Return to the Bat Cave, was produced by Jennifer Errick, with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to Vincent Santucci.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Read the Grand Canyon research team’s most recent paper at: parks.berkeley.edu/psf/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/psf_401_chambers_web.pdf
Read Stephen Eginoire’s story for the Grand Canyon Trust at: www.grandcanyontrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/AdvocateMagFall2024Digital.pdf
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Multiple staffing crises are harming the National Park Service, including mass layoffs, a hiring freeze, forced retirements and delays in onboarding seasonal employees — and a new reduction in force could be imminent. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced plans late last Friday to drastically consolidate land management agencies across the country, and a new round of terminations could affect every level of park management.
These reckless, wide-ranging job cuts come at a time when national parks are more popular than ever. How are parks — and people — coping under these ongoing employee upheavals?
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with John Garder, senior director of budget and appropriation at the National Parks Conservation Association, and Cassidy Jones, former park ranger and visitation program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association, on how job cuts and insecurity are harming parks and morale, some of the long-term consequences for resource protection, and what people can do to support park staff.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 42, Squeezed Thin: Park Staff in Upheaval, was produced by Jennifer Errick, with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to Angela Gonzalez, Cory MacNulty and Abbey Robertson.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Read Cassidy Jones’ recent blog story on how to prepare to visit understaffed parks at npca.org/prepare
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org, including one of Cassidy’s favorite winter adventures in episode 15, The Little Jewel Box.
Remember, NPCA’s silent auction is live until April 28, and you can bid on your own podcast-style audio story, for you and about you, as well as many other cool experiences and keepsakes, at npca.org/auction
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org.
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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On April 18, the National Parks Conservation Association will host a 10-day silent auction. As part of this fundraiser, The Secret Lives of Parks cohost Jennifer Errick is offering to produce a podcast-style audio story for one winning bidder or couple, modeled after the stories we create here.
Today, we’re sharing what this kind of keepsake can sound like, with excerpts from Jennifer’s recent conversation with NPCA Senior Vice President of Communications Amy Hagovsky. If you'd like to be the star of your own audio story, check out npca.org/auction. There are plenty of other great items you can bid on, too, from a fly-fishing trip to a set of beautiful T-shirts to a giant box of cheese. All the proceeds will benefit NPCA’s mission to protect national parks.
On the Trail with Amy is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association. Today's special episode was produced by me, Jennifer Errick, with help from Todd Christopher and Bev Stanton. Special thanks to Molly Green.
Music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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To celebrate the centennial of the National Park Service in 2016, journalist Conor Knighton visited all 59 capital-N, capital-P parks in one year — turning that experience into a series of "On the Trail" segments for CBS Sunday Morning and, later, into the New York Times best-selling memoir "Leave Only Footprints."
Host Todd Christopher interviews Conor about that year and how his year in the parks shaped his understanding of our public lands, and of himself as well.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer
The Secret Lives of Parks is brought to you by:
Todd Christopher – Producer & Host
Jennifer Errick – Producer & Host
Bev Stanton – Online Producer
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks. Learn more at npca.org
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The Clara Barton National Historic Site in Glen Echo, Maryland, was the first national park site created to honor a woman and one of just 13 such sites across the country. Barton lived and worked in this corner of Maryland thanks to a unique partnership with a local arts institution known as Glen Echo Park, whose founders built the stately building to honor her as a celebrity in residence. It served as a multipurpose homestead and the American Red Cross headquarters during the last 15 years of Barton’s life.
But now, the building is in serious disrepair and in need of numerous upgrades. Ironically, the fruitful partnership between Barton’s site and Glen Echo Park led to an inappropriate plan that would have minimized Barton’s legacy. A team of historians banded together to improve the process and share the importance of this American hero, who devoted her life to serving others while breaking barriers and revolutionizing disaster response in the process.
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with Liz Witherspoon, co-founder and CEO of the Clara Barton Fund and board member for the American Red Cross for Montgomery, Frederick and Howard Counties in Maryland; as well as Pam Goddard, senior program director for the Mid-Atlantic region at the National Parks Conservation Association. They discuss Clara Barton’s remarkable legacy, the state of her homestead and headquarters, the new group helping to preserve her history, and the puppet show concept that galvanized them to take action.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 40, The Angel of Glen Echo, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton, Linda Coutant and Abbey Robertson.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org. Hear about another inspiring woman who broke all kinds of glass ceilings in episode 35, The Woman Behind the Weekend, on the incomparable Frances Perkins. And listen to more about Pam Goddard and her work to preserve the Chesapeake Bay watershed in episode 24, The Beacon.
Podcast listeners can get a 10% discount at npca.org/store for just a few more days, until March 31, by using code PARKSPOD at checkout.
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Dinosaur National Monument in Colorado and Utah is the original Jurassic Park, created 110 years ago to protect a trove of more than 1,500 fossils, including the Allosaurus, the Diplodocus, the Stegosaurus and many others. Visitors can even touch real dinosaur bones from 149 million years ago.
This area has long been a target for oil and gas development, but earlier this month, incoming Interior Secretary Doug Burgum raised the threat level when he issued a new secretarial order directing his assistant secretaries to review all public lands for potential new resource extraction, specifically targeting national monuments. NPCA released a list of 13 national monuments our organization believes are most vulnerable to new development threats, including Dinosaur National Monument.
This episode host Jennifer Errick speaks with Cody Perry, a longtime advocate for Dinosaur National Monument and assistant director of Living Rivers and Colorado Riverkeeper, and Kristen Brengel, senior vice president for Government Affairs at the National Parks Conservation Association, on what makes Dinosaur so special, why it and other national monuments are under attack, and how public outrage isn’t just normal — it’s also useful.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 39, Save the Dinosaurs, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton, and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to Cory MacNulty, Daniel Hart, Beau Kiklis, Katelynn Shea, Michaela Pavlat, Caitlyn Burford, Michael Jamison, and Betsy Buffington.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
See NPCA’s list of 13 threatened national monuments at npca.org/13monuments
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
Podcast listeners can get a 10% discount at npca.org/store through March 31, 2025, by using code PARKSPOD at checkout. Check out our “I stand with park rangers” T-shirts and other gear, and make sure Dana knows we sent you!
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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“Half the park is after dark.” This phrase was coined by the astronomer and artist Tyler Nordgren in 2010 as part of a series of posters he created of nightscapes at public lands. National parks are some of the best places in the country to see dark night skies. Still, many visitors head home after sunset, not even considering the sights they’re missing out on.
This episode, photographer and night-sky enthusiast Jeff Pfaller speaks with host Jennifer Errick on some of the techniques he uses to take stunning images of stars, synchronous fireflies and other phenomena at national parks. He explains how he got started, the three essential capabilities you need your camera to have, why right now is an excellent time to see the northern lights, and reasons he recommends Yosemite as an ideal place for admiring dark skies.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 38, Photographing Parks After Dark, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher and Bev Stanton
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about Jeff Pfaller’s photography and preorder his upcoming book at jeffpfaller.com
Learn more about the National Park Service night sky program and look up astronomy programs in your area at nps.gov/subjects/nightskies/
Get information about certified dark-sky parks at darksky.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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The Mojave Desert of Southern California is a place where creatures move and grow at a slow pace. In this vast, harsh landscape, the desert tortoise has served as a hard-working hero that has helped life flourish around it for centuries. But its population has been plummeting for decades, and activists have been working to preserve more than half a million acres that will help the tortoise, and many other species, survive.
In this episode, host Jennifer Errick travels to the Mojave Desert to speak with desert tortoise expert and NPCA California Program Manager Luke Basulto and Executive Director of the Desert Advocate Media Network and 90 Miles from Needles podcast host Chris Clarke. These two long-time desert residents and park advocates talk about how the desert tortoise is critical to the Mojave, why the proposed national monument is a special place for a variety of plants and animals, the special lure that blank spots have on the map, and some of the rare desert sights you can only see at Chuckwalla.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
This episode was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to NPCA Communications Manager Caitlyn Burford.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about the Protect California Deserts Coalition at protectchuckwalla.org
Learn more about the Desert Advocate Media Network and listen to Chris Clarke’s 90 Miles from Needles podcast at thedamn.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Have you ever dreamed of living on the road and exploring national parks for months at a time? One Minnesota couple uprooted their lives to go on a year-long adventure with their twin daughters, building a curriculum for their girls’ education at public lands around the country.
How did they do it? This episode, we explore some of the joys and challenges of “roadschooling.”
Host Jennifer Errick speaks with Jen Goepfert, Travis Pedersen, and their daughters Aela and Eva. From the seed of the idea to their first taste of living in a 42-foot trailer together, this adventurous and creative family shares why they spent years planning their trip and some of their hopes and concerns for their year on wheels.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
This episode was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to NPCA Upper Midwest Campaign Director Chris Goepfert, Jen Goepfert’s sister, for sharing this adventure with our team.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about the Goepfert-Pedersen family and follow their blog at thebigfunrv.com
Read the National Parks magazine story that first inspired Jen at npca.org/articles/1865-lessons-in-motion
Learn about the Every Kid Outdoors program at everykidoutdoors.gov
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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If you enjoy having time off on the weekend, you can thank the woman who standardized the 40-hour workweek and made the concept possible. Frances Perkins also created Social Security and unemployment insurance, banned child labor, and put many safety measures and workplace protections in place that we simply take for granted. Yet, few people know much about the first female U.S. cabinet secretary and how she continues to shape our lives decades later.
Giovanna Gray Lockhart is executive director of the Frances Perkins Center and a key advocate for making Perkins’ homestead in Newcastle, Maine, our newest national park site; it would be just the thirteenth devoted to interpreting women’s history. In this episode, host Jennifer Errick talks with Lockhart about why Perkins was so important, why we don’t know more about her, and what visitors can see at her wooded 57-acre riverside farm.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
This episode was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to NPCA Communications Director Alison Heis and Government Affairs Senior Vice President Kristen Brengel.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about the Frances Perkins Center at francesperkinscenter.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Since childhood, award-winning author Kevin Grange has been fascinated with one of the most fearsome and misunderstood predators on the continent: grizzly bears. His passion has taken him to remote and colorful destinations, and he has spent many long, rugged days following in the pawprints of grizzlies — and occasionally having those pawprints charging back in his direction.
Now, Grange shares his wealth of bear knowledge and advice in a new book, “Grizzly Confidential: An Astounding Journey into the Secret Life of North America’s Most Fearsome Predator.” In this episode, host Jennifer Errick asks Grange about the enduring charisma of bears, the many stories he uncovered in his research, and whether people truly can live in harmony with these 600-pound mammals.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
This episode was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to National Parks magazine Editor-in-Chief Rona Marech and Associate Editor Katherine DeGroff.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about Kevin Grange and his new book, “Grizzly Confidential,” at kevingrange.com
Read an excerpt from Kevin Grange’s visit to Katmai National Park and Preserve at npca.org/magazine and learn how you can subscribe to National Parks magazine to get in-depth reporting and storytelling on national park issues for just $15 a year.
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Our pets are family, and when we travel, it only makes sense that we want to bring our dogs with us. Many national park sites are ideal places for our canine companions, with accessible trails and programs geared just for them — but not every site is a good choice for a dog, and many can present serious dangers to our pets.
A new system-wide map and guide to dog accessibility can take some of the mystery out of planning a park trip, and knowing the park regulations and best practices can make trips safer and easier for pet owners and their furry family members. In this episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with Dr. Ryan Valdez, NPCA senior director for conservation science, and Dave Bieri, district supervisor at New River Gorge National Park, about the range of options for dogs in parks, the National Park Service’s BARK Ranger program, joys and fears of traveling with dogs, and tips for having a safe and enjoyable park trip.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
This episode was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to Charlie, Beans and Blu, canine companions of NPCA Special Events and Design Director Rachel Holmes and Video Production Manager Terrance Liggins, for providing the barking noises used in this story.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about Dr. Ryan Valdez’s research project and view his interactive map at npca.org/dogs
Learn more about the National Park Service BARK Ranger program at nps.gov/subjects/pets/
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Last month, several hundred people gathered in Greenwich Village to celebrate the opening of a new visitor center at Stonewall National Monument and to honor the movement Stonewall set in motion as the “birthplace for Pride.” Mark Segal is a longtime activist and journalist who participated in the momentous events that took place here in June 1969, and he curated the interpretive exhibit featured in the new visitor center.
In this episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with Segal on the events of the uprising and how it shaped his lifetime of activism. We also feature NPCA Northeast Program Manager Timothy Leonard who has spent 10 years working with the coalition that helped create and support the monument, as well as clips from the grand opening event, featuring President Joe Biden and Pride Live CEO Diana Rodriguez, the driving force behind the new visitor center.
Special thanks to the staff of Pride Live, NPCA Communications Director Alison Zemanski Heis and NPCA Northeast Regional Director Kristen Sykes.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center and make a reservation to visit at StonewallVisitorCenter.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve Stonewall National Monument and all of our national park sites. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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On the remote Sea Islands of South Carolina, golf courses and gated developments are changing the rural character of some of the first African American-owned lands in the country.
The Gullah/Geechee are the direct descendants of the enslaved people who once worked on the area's rice, cotton and indigo plantations; now, the island that serves as the epicenter of their culture is at risk from a new development threat. The Gullah/Geechee and their lands played a critical role at a turning point in the Civil War and are a central part of the history of the Reconstruction Era National Historical Site.
In this episode, host Jennifer Errick travels with her colleague, NPCA Field Representative Joshua Jenkins, a South Carolina native, to speak with Queen Quet, chieftess and head of state of the Gullah/Geechee Nation; Ranger Katherine Freeman and Chief of Interpretation Chris Barr of the Reconstruction Era National Historical Site; and Grant McClure, south coast project manager for the Coastal Conservation League.
Correction: Queen Quet was elected to her position as chieftess and head of state of the Gullah/Geechee Nation in 2000, not 2002 as reported in the story. NPCA regrets the error.
Learn more about the coalition to protect Saint Helena Island at protectsthelena.com
Learn more about the Gullah/Geechee Nation at gullahgeecheenation.com. Follow Queen Quet on Facebook at facebook.com/GullahGeecheeWeBe/ and on TikTok at tiktok.com/@gullahgeecheenation
In this episode, we discuss the Penn School on St. Helena Island, one of the first schools in the country where formerly enslaved people could receive an education. The Penn Center is the nonprofit organization that owns and manages the historic campus today. The National Park Service has an agreement with the Penn Center to use a portion of the property. Learn more about the historic school at penncenter.com
Read a 2023 NPR story on this issue at npr.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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They say the stars at night are big and bright deep in the heart of Texas... but what about the middle of the day? Not just any day—in this episode, we experience the recent total solar eclipse at Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park and discover how the history of this Hill Country ranch connects it to the night sky and the heyday of the U.S. space program.
Host Todd Christopher captures the sounds of the awe-inspiring celestial event from the LBJ Ranch as ranger Kevin Goodwin shares LBJ’s space cowboy roots and NASA’s Molly Wasser breaks down the science behind solar eclipses. Original theme music by Chad Fischer
The Secret Lives of Parks is brought to you by:
Todd Christopher – Producer & Host
Jennifer Errick – Producer & Host
Bev Stanton – Online Producer
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks. Learn more at npca.org
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At first glance, American Samoa feels like an idyllic, tropical South Pacific paradise where life has changed very little in the past century. But residents have been struggling with the pronounced effects of climate change and other serious challenges. Samoan beaches are visibly eroding, heat and salt water are affecting residents’ ability to grow food and to fish, and the resulting changes in diets are creating more medical problems for the people who live on these remote islands. Yet, Samoans are determined to preserve their lands and keep their culture and traditions alive for their children.
Reporter Dennis Arguelles shares stories from the tiny island of Aunu’u and neighboring islands of Ofu and Olosega in American Samoa with host Jennifer Errick, featuring village chief and tour guide Pika Taliva’a; elementary school teacher Celesty Tuiolosega-Morse; and lodge owner Deborah Malae.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 29, Holding Back the Sea, was reported by Dennis Arguelles and produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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The Colorado River flows through some of the most spectacular landscapes in the Southwest, provides drinking water to more than 40 million people, and is one of the most important sources of water for U.S. agriculture. But access to the river has never been fair, and now, water levels are at historic lows after decades of extreme drought.
Photojournalist and visual storyteller Pete McBride has photographed every mile of the river over nearly 20 years of reporting and exploration. This episode, McBride speaks with host Jennifer Errick about his new book, “The Colorado River: Chasing Water,” and how he sought to capture not just the magnificence of the river but its “lost, dead beauty.” Despite the complexity of the crisis, he shares ideas for solutions — and reasons for hope.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 28, The Beauty of Loss, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to National Parks magazine Editor-in-Chief Rona Marech, NPCA Southwest Regional Director Ernie Atencio and NPCA Southwest Associate Director Erika Pollard.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about Pete McBride’s book, “The Colorado River: Chasing Water,” at rizzoliusa.com/book/9780847899746
See a selection of McBride’s photos in the new Spring issue of National Parks magazine at npca.org/magazine. Subscribe to our award-winning magazine at npca.org/subscribe
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America’s national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation’s only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
And we’re proud of it, too.
You can join the fight to preserve our national parks. Learn more and join us at npca.org
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In the late 1970s, only three national park sites out of 300 had specifically been created to interpret women’s history. Judy Hart, then a chief ranger for legislation in the National Park Service’s Boston office, knew she wanted to improve that number, but she wasn’t sure how.
Hart’s determination took her to Seneca Falls, New York, as well as Capitol Hill as she won people over with the power of her idea. She used every tactic at her disposal to honor notable leaders in the movement for women’s rights, even though the run-down buildings where they had once made history didn’t meet the standard of the time for what a national park was supposed to look like.
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with Judy Hart about her quest to preserve nine buildings in Seneca Falls and Waterloo, New York; her new new book, “A National Park for Women’s History”; and why the concept of an “idea park” marked an important shift in thinking for the Park Service that allowed the agency to be more inclusive.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 27, Creating the Country’s First ‘Idea Park,’ was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher and Bev Stanton.
Special thanks to NPCA Mid-Atlantic Senior Program Director Pam Goddard.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn more about Judy Hart’s new book, “A National Park for Women’s Rights,” at https://parkb.it/3SWYoaT
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America's national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation's only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
Learn more and join us at npca.org
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In the 1950s and ’60s, Alabama was a battleground for voting equality. White elected officials had long denied Black citizens their constitutional right to vote, and thousands of activists faced violent opposition from white residents and officials. In 1965, the Selma to Montgomery march made history, galvanizing the nation and leading to the passage of the Voting Rights Act, which finally allowed millions of disenfranchised Black citizens to cast ballots.
The march route is preserved in the National Park System. But event wouldn’t have been possible without private landowners along the route who risked their lives and jobs to allow hundreds of participants to camp on their properties. Now these campsites are falling into disrepair — and conservationists are carefully considering how to save this history before it’s lost.
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with preservationist and film producer Phillip Howard of the Conservation Fund; DaVine Hall McGuire, granddaughter of David Hall, owner of the first campsite along the march route; and Cheryl Gardner Davis, daughter of Robert and Mary Gardner, owners of the third campsite along the march route.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 26, Stamped in the Soil, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Special thanks to Eboni Preston, acting director of NPCA’s Southeast Region.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer. Learn more about the film “54 Miles to Home” at vimeo.com/591288364 and southernexposurefilms.org
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America's national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation's only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
Learn more and join us at npca.org
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Paleontologists have long explored Glen Canyon National Recreation Area on the border of Arizona and Utah for its fossils, notably its prolific dinosaur tracks — but few bones have ever been found there. But last March, after watching the waters at Lake Powell drop, scientists made a calculated hunch to investigate areas of the lakebed that hadn’t been exposed in 60 years. Their hunch paid off — and then some — with an unprecedented trove of remains that could provide scientists with new insights into one of the early Jurassic’s quirkiest hybrid creatures.
This episode, meet the tritylodont, the 190-million-year-old mammal-like reptile that walked among some of the earliest dinosaurs and might be able to teach us about adapting to climate change.
This episode, host Jennifer Errick speaks with the distinguished team responsible for the discovery: Andrew R.C. Milner, site paleontologist and curator at the Saint George Dinosaur Discovery site in Saint George, Utah; Vincent Santucci, senior paleontologist and Paleontology Program coordinator for the National Park Service; Dr. Hans Sues, senior research geologist and curator of paleontology at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History; and Dr. Adam Marsh, lead paleontologist and research coordinator at Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona.
The Secret Lives of Parks is a production of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Episode 25, The Skeleton Crew, was produced by Jennifer Errick with help from Todd Christopher, Bev Stanton and Linda Coutant.
Original theme music by Chad Fischer.
Learn about the 286 sites across the National Park System that have known fossils at nps.gov/subjects/fossils
Learn more about this podcast and listen to the rest of our stories at thesecretlivesofparks.org
For more than a century, the National Parks Conservation Association has been protecting and enhancing America's national parks for present and future generations. With more than 1.6 million members and supporters, NPCA is the nation's only independent, nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to protecting national parks.
Learn more and join us at npca.org
- Visa fler
