America’s Best Idea Grants

Park attendees record digital accounts of their lives and experiences in and out of the park.

The parks of Western PA are producing a documentary about the deep roots of American history in the parks, and also the people who helped preserve and protect the lands in the National Park System.

Pueblo Indian interns worked to build connection between the park and native populations.

This Grant At Work:

Crow Indian students explored their heritage and connection to the park lands and made recordings to document their experiences.

Hundreds of youth from across the state participated in an essay contest hosted by all five of the state's national parks. Students were asked to write about what their national parks mean to them.

This Grant At Work:

Children record their family stories from their perspective at Carl Sandburg’s home.

A high level symposium at Howard University and the National Archives will explore both the untold story of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, and also the current relationship between African-Americans and their parks - Coming on September 10th 2009.

Hispanic NPS leaders hosted events with Hispanic youth to talk about careers in the park service, and the community’s connection to the lands.

Middle–school African–American students attended “Swamp Stories” summer camp where they learned the history of the swamp beforeit became a national park.

Kids from the local YMCA camp are introduced to the park through a photo contest.

Native Alaskan youth create digital stories about their time in remote camp in Denali National Park.

This Grant At Work:

The Roberts Family, a bilingual African-American family, made a documentary (premiering late September 2009 on PBS WPBT in Miami) about their first trip into the Everglades – we can all see ourselves in the experience of this family

Native American tribal people give voice to their stories of personal and historical connection to the parks and share them in radio segments

College students and faculty reach out to the Caribbean and Guyanese communities and connect them to Gateway NRA through classes and the production of a new documentary.

Community campfires bring people from all walks of life together to share their stories and connect with one of the nation's most cherished parks.

Middle school students from the Boys & Girls Club of Tucson have a once in a lifetime opportunity to explore the Grand Canyon, and learn the art of nature photography

Native youth from communities surrounding the park are creating 3–5 min. films that depict why the park is important to them

This youth film contest will culminate in a screening of the shorts with the students who made them with Ken Burns at Independence National Historical Park on Friday, September 11th, 2009.

Youth who live on or near the lakeshore learned about the park as they observed, recorded, and documented their park with new recording equipment.

Bringing together 7th and 8th graders from underserved communities in the Las Vegas area and providing an opportunity to discover the park while creating digital stories.

High school students take their turn behind the camera, and tell their unique stories of growing up and attending school within the historic district of Lowell, MA.

Native youth create a film about the park called “Hopi Youth Guide to Mesa Verde,” which will help engage all young people in the rich life of the park

Families from some of Seattle’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods were brought to the Camping Adventure with My Parents (CAMP) for an overnight stay as part of a series of programs between the three parks.

DC middle school students were immersed in their local park sites and become park stewards during summer camp programs.

Students learn about Teddy Roosevelt through a dynamic four–part process including in–school visits from park rangers, field trips, a screening of portions of the Ken Burns film and creating a multi–media art book to leave as their lasting legacy of their learnings.

Boys & Girls Club students enjoyed a unique opportunity this summer to explore the lives of African-American sailors and even took part in a week long sailing program aboard the Schooner Fame, a replica of a 19th century boat.

In an effort to capture and preserve the rich history of the mission community, area families were invited to come to the park to digitally record their stories, and to scan any photos of the mission from 1978 or earlier.

The park will host screenings of all six episodes of Ken Burns’ “THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICAS BEST IDEA” for the local community in Puerto Rico, and will host discussions befor and after each screening about the diverse people who helped create America’s national parks.

Los Angeles residents from all walks of life were invited to an evening in the park to see a sneak preview of the Burns documentary and enjoy an introduction to their park.

Travelers through the regional airport are greeted each day with a life size reproduction of a Sequoia, along with educational material, which both serve as an invitation to bring new audiences to the park.

The Northwest Michigan Youth Corps produced video diaries about their time exploring the parks; and Greening of Detroit members participated in a variety of service learning projects.

Connect with underserved populations represented in the Nashville Public Schools system through several outreach projects that will help students and their families form intellectual and emotional connections the NPS and their local park sites.

In partnership with Arizona Public Radio, the parks will create a radio series that will tell the stories of the parks in Northern Arizona and the native people who have deep, historic ties to the land.

Junior Rangers from area Boys & Girls Clubs and Big Brothers & Big Sisters programs helped to produce a 90 minute documentary about the Forida parks: “National Parks of the First Coast and the Golden Isles”.

Park staff are collaborating with community members to make educational and interpretive opportunities more accessible to local residents

Working with local Hawaiian communities, the park is making educational and interpretive opportunities more accessible and relevant to facilitate a connection to their history.

Visitors to Yosemite from all walks of life participated in a series of field seminars about the park's multicultural heritage — from the African–American Buffalo Soldiers who used to patrol the land, to the Chinese-Americans who built many of the parks mountain roads.