Superintendent's View

Kevin Schneider

Photo courtesy Ashley L. Conti, Friends of Acadia

Kevin Schneider

Superintendent

Acadia National Park

Saint Croix Island International Historic Site

What will Acadia look like in 100 years?

Acadia Magazine (Friends of Acadia)
October 2024

Your electric flying car whisks you to Hulls Cove Transit Center before valeting itself into an underground parking garage. A cool breeze hits your face as a silent, electric zero-emission Island Explorer train pulls in front of you to whisk you around a traffic-free Park Loop Road, depositing you close to your desired trailhead. When you get lost on your hike, you whip out your Holodeck, which summons the reincarnated Park Ranger George B. Dorr, who fearlessly guides you to safety.

Though that version of "future Acadia" is likely a little outlandish, I think about the future of Acadia a lot.

It's probably fair to say that, in 100 years, Acadia will look very different than it does now, much as the park has changed in the last 100 years.

Our world is facing a series of unprecedented challenges and rapid changes, many of which will impact Acadia. Some of these forces will bring around positive change for the park and its stewards. For example, as we are able to automate tasks like reservation and fee collection, our talented staff will have more time to serve our visitors. But I'd be lying if I didn't say that issues like climate change, nature-deficit disorder among young people, and a very challenging fiscal environment didn't concern me.

On those particularly difficult days, one of the things that brings me solace is the reality that the lands we now call Acadia have always been here, and thanks to our community of stewards, the park will be here 100 years from now.

These lands we were tasked with preserving and protecting for future generations will continue to inspire people for generations to come. That's why it's all the more important that we, as stewards of these beautiful public lands, make sure that future generations have the tools and resources available to them to carry on the NPS's legacy. We would not be able to do this without the support of partners like Friends of Acadia.

Our dedication to youth programming like the Schoodic Education Adventure program allows young people who may never have had the opportunity to come to Acadia to soak themselves in its beauty and become inspired.

Our volunteer programs give everyone the chance to give back and deepen their connection with the park.

Our partnership with Schoodic Institute generates the science we need to confront future challenges, while also providing an immersive place for learning.

Thanks to Friends of Acadia's dedication to seasonal workforce housing, we will be able to offer housing to the next generation of National Park Service leaders. Housing allows individuals who want to build a career in the park service to get their foot in the door.

While it is an enteraining thought experiment to envision Acadia 100 years from now, I often remind myself that my job as superintendent is not to think about today, but about tomorrow.

That time horizon may be more realistically 5-20 years out – and within that frame, I can't wait to see at least zero-emission electric Island Explorer buses navigating through a new transit center at Hulls Cove!

– Kevin Schneider