Civic Engagement

Ranger Shauna Allen converses with visitors about the park's future.

NPS Photo

"Civic engagement" is a philosophy, discipline, and practice defined by the National Park Service as "a continuous, dynamic conversation with the public on many levels that reinforces public commitment to the preservation of heritage resources." . The National Park Service has established guiding principles regarding such civic engagement. The five NPS strategies that guide civic engagement initiatives are as follows:

· Be an effective collaborative leader by building a leadership approach for successfully collaborating with others and engaging with the public;

· Build NPS team capacity for engagement and collaboration through practices that enable successful relationships;

· Prepare in advance before launching an engagement process by investing the time in due diligence to understand the local context and history of park-community relationships;

· Build and maintain relationships through the application of proven practices of collaboration and civic engagement;

· Sustain the effort over time through practices that cultivate successful collaboration and partnerships.

Learn more about Civic Engagement

Engagement Projects