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America’s Great Outdoors Initiative Should Give Due Consideration to National Park Values and Needs

The national parks deserve a prominent place in any forward-thinking initiatives emerging from the White House Conference on America's Great Outdoors, which convenes on April 16 to address the challenges, opportunities and innovations surrounding modern-day land conservation and the importance of reconnecting Americans and American families to the outdoors.

Reader Participation Survey: Which National Park Has the Best Wildflower Blooms?

Every year it seems talk begins in January about how spectacular the wildflower bloom in Death Valley National Park will be. And Great Smoky Mountains National Park has its Wildflower Pilgrimage, while Shenandoah National Park has a wildflower festival. Which leaves us wondering, which national park is best for wildflowers?

Listen to the Interview: National Park Service Appoints Gerard Baker Assistant Director of American Indian Relations

For the first time in its history the National Park Service is going to have a full-time assistant director for American Indian Relations. Gerard Baker, a 30-year Park Service veteran who most recently has been superintendent of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, will take that role on April 24. A full-blood Mandan-Hidatsa Indian, Mr. Baker relishes the opportunity to improve relations between the Park Service and Native American tribes.