Zion Forever

By Paige Boucher

Zion National Park, the fourth most-visited national park in the US, is celebrating its centennial this year. Designated by Congress in 1919, Zion was Utah’s first national park and continues to draw visitors from around the globe who come for wonders like the precipitous Angel’s Landing Trail, hike the famed Narrows or just to marvel at the massive sandstone walls. Mark Preiss, Director of the Zion Forever Project, the non-profit partner of the park, hopes to highlight the park’s centennial as a way to engage the next generation of park stewards. He and the Zion Forever team would like for all of us to become “Keepers” of these sacred lands as the park moves into its next 100 years.

What does it mean to be a “Keeper” and why should visitors think differently than they have in the past?

The national parks and all public lands, including Zion, belong to all Americans, but people tend to think of themselves only as guests. We developed the “We the Keepers” campaign to shift that mindset to one of ownership, where we all feel like stewards, each finding our own way to preserve and protect these precious resources.

With federal budgets flat or even declining, the current resources do not sufficiently cover maintenance of existing park infrastructure, not to mention the many critical programs like the Jr. Ranger initiative that rely fully on funding from Zion Forever Project and its donors. With rapid growth in visitation, parks and public lands need more infrastructure and ever more protection going forward. Volunteers, partners and contributors to the Forever Project provide the baseline support for many of these programs, but there is an opportunity for each of us to embrace stewardship in a personal way.

How does Zion National Park fit into the Greater Zion Landscape?

Lying in the heart of southern Utah, Zion National Park is a rare desert oasis for visitors from all over the world. But beyond the park boundaries are over 2,000 square miles of geological, cultural and recreational adventure and inspiration for anyone who wants to get off the beaten path and explore. The Greater Zion Landscape includes gateway communities, BLM holdings, National Forest Lands, Cedar Breaks National Monument, and Pipe Springs National Monument, as well as the local businesses and residents that are at the forefront of these diverse challenges. While Zion is considered by most to be our gem, the surrounding parks and lands offer fewer visitors and equally impressive landscapes.

How are you getting the word out about the We the Keepers campaign?

We have a lot going on at the moment. Sting and the Utah Symphony are kicking off our centennial celebration and campaign with a benefit performance at the end of the month in Salt Lake City. We are beyond honored to have Sting choose Zion Forever as the recipient of this generous gift.

We’ve commissioned Local.Studio, a Utah-based video production company, to create a new park orientation film to replace the 20-year-old film currently screening in the park. The film follows a cast of characters from the area including the Paiute people, local ranchers, families, artists, climbers and wildlife and it challenges the viewer to make their impact on the land a positive one. They will also create a longer cut of the film to take on the film festival circuit and we hope it will set a new standard for stewardship for other national parks. The first cut of the film will debut at Zion’s centennial celebration on November 19 at Dixie State University

We have a team of ambassadors and supporters including climbers, canyoners, artists, athletes, writers and photographers who have each found their own way to become a Zion Forever Steward. They are helping to get the word out through film, painting, storytelling, social media and even in personal conversations as we begin to reshape how we think about our responsibility to the park. We are reaching people from all demographics and walks of life.

What sort of projects does Zion Forever support?

All of our initiatives fall under the Forever Projects’ three mission areas: Improving Today, Informing Tomorrow, and Protecting Forever. In addition to supporting Zion National Park we support projects in Pipe Spring and Cedar Breaks National Monuments. We get requests to help with a huge variety of needs—anything that federal funding doesn’t cover. During the government shutdown, Zion Forever funds were used to fund essential staff which helped keep the park open, and we are currently raising funds for a new visitor center at the east entrance to help extend and deepen the visitor experience across our greater Zion landscape. This also helps to protect the integrity of the Zion experience itself. Think of Zion as the sacred center of this greater landscape that we are all caretaking. Honestly our projects are very diverse and have a range of impacts, from educational programs like our virtual classrooms and the Paiute Tribal Youth Camp, to service projects like trail reconstruction, the tracking of Big Horn Sheep or even the production of the next generation of park maps using high-res satellite imagery.  We are busy!

Can you share a personal story which exemplifies the passion you feel about Zion or our national parks in general?

Before I came to Zion, I was the assistant director at Glacier National Park. My kids were devastated to leave, but it did not take long for them to make Zion their new backyard. The parks are all connected in my family story. The Western landscape is connected to us. My kids’ stories are blended from the high elevation of Glacier to the red rocks of Zion. The power of Zion creates deep stories and deep connections. These stories are told all over the world.