Archive for the ‘National Park Foundation’ Category

Travel Channel Partners with NPF for “Destination Summer” campaign

Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012
The Travel Channel, the preeminent travel brand in the media landscape, will join with the National Park Foundation (NPF), the official charity of America’s national parks, in a summer-long campaign to promote America’s 397 national parks. The primary goal of this alliance is to motivate support of our national parks by inspiring Travel Channel viewers to visit these adventure-packed and history-rich destinations as well encourage volunteerism and monetary donations to NPF.

Travel Channel will support the NPF partnership via a myriad of on- and off-air initiatives positioned under the Network’s “Destination Summer” campaign. Beginning Memorial Day and continuing through September, the Network will feature 30 hours of programming that puts the spotlight on America’s national parks. In addition, on Saturday, June 9, Travel Channel will celebrate “Get Outdoors Day” with an on-air and online marketing campaign showcasing the national parks through exclusive videos, slideshows and feature articles. The Network will also post exclusive, national park-related content on its Facebook, Foursquare, Pinterest and other social media platforms. NPF will cross-promote these efforts on its website and social media platforms.

“Through this Summer partnership, the National Park Foundation and Travel Channel, will provide the Network’s passionate viewers with the best tools and information to plan the perfect national park adventures,” said Neil Mulholland, President and CEO of the National Park Foundation. “Together, we will also highlight the most effective ways we all can support and preserve these incredible places to ensure they remain one of the most engaging travel destinations for generations to come.”

Travel Channel’s programming campaign spotlighting America’s national parks will kick off on Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, with numerous series and specials including: a “Get Outdoors” stack of programming that includes back-to-back episodes of “Best Parks Ever” which features iconic national parks including Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Glacier, Great Smoky Mountains and Zion; and “Glamping,” which showcases glamorous camping in the wild. Other summer programming supporting the NPF partnership includes “Park Secrets,” the series that gives viewers everything they need to know to turn from tourist to traveler in America’s parks; and “Alaska Unleashed,” a one-hour special highlighting the best and most extreme adventures in Alaska.

A 2012 study by MMGY Global and the U.S. Travel Association found that television programming about U.S. destinations encourages domestic travel. Specifically, 61 percent of Travel Channel viewers reported conducting research to find out more about a U.S. destination featured in a TV program. Moreover, 39 percent of Travel Channel viewers said they are more likely to visit a U.S. destination after viewing a TV program on the topic.

Chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1967, NPF is founded on a legacy that began more than a century ago, when private citizens from all walks of life took action to establish and protect our national parks. Today, the foundation carries on that tradition as the only national nonprofit whose sole mission is to directly support the National Park Service.

Travel Channel is one of six popular television brands within the Scripps Networks Interactive (SNI) lifestyle media portfolio, which also includes Food Network and HGTV. SNI is committed to its corporate social responsibility program, serving as a positive force for change by focusing on one meal, one home and one community at a time through its Change the World initiatives. Travel Channel’s robust summer-long partnership with the National Park Foundation builds on more than $2.5 million in support that SNI has given to the Friends of the Smokies organization over the past several years to help protect and preserve the Great Smoky Mountains National Park located near SNI headquarters in Knoxville, Tenn. To learn more about all of SNI’s corporate social responsibility efforts, visit snichangetheworld.com.


Jeff
Hiking Trails in the Smokies

National Park Foundation Awards Grant to Friends of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park

Thursday, February 16th, 2012
The National Park Foundation, the official charity of America's national parks, announced today that they are awarding the Friends of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park with a 2012 Impact Grant to support the development of the education DVD The Civil War at Cumberland Gap, which will look at the homefront and slavery issues along with the multiple military occupations at the historic Cumberland Gap. The grant is part of the National Park Foundation's Impact Grant program which gives parks the critical financial support needed to transform innovative, yet underfunded ideas into successful in-park programs and initiatives.

The project follows three factual family or personal histories that play out on a steadily progressing timeline of the Civil War. The Cumberland Gap's military history is necessarily part of the project, but the individual sagas of Appalachian people will be the mechanism for explaining the Civil War at the Cumberland Gap. Specifically, through re-enactors, three stories will be conveyed:

(1) The desperate and heartbreaking family struggles of Union Soldier Franklin Jones who deserts while in the military hospital at Cumberland Gap.

(2) The murder of a former slave known as Samuel by presumed bushwhackers is also investigated.

(3) The unusual final military confrontation at Cumberland Gap as experienced by a young Confederate homefront soldier named Jeremiah Dean.

These stories, superimposed over the Gap's military activities, provide an overview of the diverse experiences and highlight the divisiveness of the war as it existed in Tennessee and throughout the country. Lesson plans will accompany the educational DVD and will be aligned with the National Council for the Social Studies Standards and will meet all criteria for the No Child Left Behind initiative.

The project is expected to be completed in August 2012 with the DVD being provided free of charge to teachers and home schooled groups.

A precursor for the development of the education DVD is the story of Federal soldier Franklin Jones produced for WBIR-TV, the NBC affiliate in Knoxville, TN, as part of a long running program on that station known as The Heartland Series. The hour-long segment aired on WBIR during the fall of 2011.

"With these strategic grants, we have been able to positively impact hundreds of national parks across the country," said Neil Mulholland, President and CEO of the National Park Foundation. "This unique program helps the parks enhance the visitor experience, engaging more people, and ultimately building a stronger community of park enthusiasts who share an appreciation and commitment to protecting America's Best Idea, their national parks."

The National Park Foundation, in partnership with ARAMARK through the Yawkey Foundation, The Fernandez Pave the Way Foundation and The HISTORY Channel, awarded Impact Grant grants to 62 national parks across the country totaling more than $500,000. A full list of grantees is available on the National Park Foundation website.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

25 Unforgettable National Park Hikes

Saturday, October 22nd, 2011
In the latest edition of GoParks, the National Park Foundation presents a quick guide to "25 Unforgettable National Park Hikes".

The list includes several classic hikes from Acadia to Zion, and everywhere in between. Making the list was the Andrews Bald hike in the Great Smoky Mountains. Most of the hikes are easy to moderate, but there are a couple of relatively strenuous hikes on the list. I've been fortunate enough to have hiked a couple of these trails, but there are a few that have been, or are now on my bucket list, such as The Narrows in Zion, Artist Point in Yosemite, and Bright Angel in the Grand Canyon.

You can view the entire list by clicking here (PDF file).


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

Trail Talk

Monday, June 27th, 2011
Ever wondered about the best hikes, sites and activities in America’s national parks? Or are you unsure about how you should plan your next visit to a national park or what you should pack? Join the National Park Foundation for Trail Talk and get all of your questions answered!

Presented by the National Park Foundation and Merrell, Trail Talk is an opportunity for you to get an insider’s perspective from the experts themselves. Every two weeks during the summer, NPF will feature a different national park on their Facebook page. Fans of NPF will have the chance to submit any and all questions they have about that park. Trail Talk will then round up the questions, bring them to our friends at the national park and one of the park rangers will respond to the questions.

You can check out the latest Trail Talk with Ranger Tom Vandenberg at Glacier Bay National Park.


Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com

Help the National Park Foundation raise up to $600,000

Sunday, January 9th, 2011
Please take a moment to help the National Park Foundation raise up to $600,000 - with just one click!

From January 9th through January 21st, the National Park Foundation will be one of four charities competing for a percentage of a $1 million grant from the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation. As part of this unique challenge grant, each of the competing charities is guaranteed $100,000, but has the opportunity to raise up to $600,000! Public support through an online voting campaign will determine how the remaining $600,000 will be allotted to the participating charities.

The National Park Foundation is competing against Keep America Beautiful, Water.org, and American Forests.

You can cast your vote for the National Park Foundation daily at www.lowes.com/give or on Lowe's Facebook page. The NPF would also appreciate if you could help spread the word about this outstanding fundraising opportunity for our national parks.

Funds raised for the Foundation through this campaign will support national park restoration and preservation efforts, connect underserved communities to their parks, and give disadvantaged children the opportunity to experience their national parks for the first time. Every vote is critical.




Jeff
HikingintheSmokys.com