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Parks Planning
The inspiration for this project came from the Great American Outdoors Act, which led me to research the deferred maintenance in the National Parks. The following is other relevant research about the visitors of the parks, and therefore the audience of the poster series.
Statement of the problem:
The National Parks receive millions of visitors every year and have a backlog of deferred maintenance, an average of $11-12 billion since 2010. Preserving the National Parks is important because they hold valuable and unique ecosystems, environments, and history. The public values National Park land, waters and programs at $92 billion per year, which is 30 times the annual budget. This valuation demonstrates the publics appreciation of the National Parks and reflects the lack of funding and need for it through other channels.
Design solution:
To bring awareness to the importance and value of the National Parks I will create a series of posters depicting scenarios where parks are properly maintained and juxtaposed with possibilities for if they are not well maintained. The parks are frequented by visitors more than locals so having different biomes depicted can appeal to many visitors. The posters can be posted within parks as well as parks social media and other conservation sites. For these posters I will use similar styles to those used in the WPA posters of the parks as well as the designs made by Anderson Design Group, which also used a similar styles to the WPA posters. The strengths of this solution include showing the most unique and valuable parts of the parks and then showing what could happen if they are no longer that. This brings attention to the importance of the parks in a positive manner while also showing what negative effects could happen to parks.
What is the significance of the design solution:
The parks are severely underfunded and are visited by millions every year. The National Parks & Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, part of the Great American Outdoors Act, will help combat the problem but is only funded until 2025 and receives the revenue from oil, gas, coal, alternative and renewable energy development of federal lands, so a decrease in that revenue would also mean a decrease in the amount to the fund. The Land and Water conservation fund is also part of the Great American Outdoors act and 40% of this fund goes to federal land acquisition. This is good in an effort to conserve more land but does not aid in restoring parks that already have deferred maintenance and can potentially spread the thin budget even thinner. The National Parks have corporate partners and private philanthropy that help preserve and maintain them, and these posters will bring attention to this option to donate, as well as binging attention to the problem of the budget allotted to the National Park service through the federal government.
Statement of the problem:
The National Parks receive millions of visitors every year and have a backlog of deferred maintenance, an average of $11-12 billion since 2010. Preserving the National Parks is important because they hold valuable and unique ecosystems, environments, and history. The public values National Park land, waters and programs at $92 billion per year, which is 30 times the annual budget. This valuation demonstrates the publics appreciation of the National Parks and reflects the lack of funding and need for it through other channels.
Design solution:
To bring awareness to the importance and value of the National Parks I will create a series of posters depicting scenarios where parks are properly maintained and juxtaposed with possibilities for if they are not well maintained. The parks are frequented by visitors more than locals so having different biomes depicted can appeal to many visitors. The posters can be posted within parks as well as parks social media and other conservation sites. For these posters I will use similar styles to those used in the WPA posters of the parks as well as the designs made by Anderson Design Group, which also used a similar styles to the WPA posters. The strengths of this solution include showing the most unique and valuable parts of the parks and then showing what could happen if they are no longer that. This brings attention to the importance of the parks in a positive manner while also showing what negative effects could happen to parks.
What is the significance of the design solution:
The parks are severely underfunded and are visited by millions every year. The National Parks & Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, part of the Great American Outdoors Act, will help combat the problem but is only funded until 2025 and receives the revenue from oil, gas, coal, alternative and renewable energy development of federal lands, so a decrease in that revenue would also mean a decrease in the amount to the fund. The Land and Water conservation fund is also part of the Great American Outdoors act and 40% of this fund goes to federal land acquisition. This is good in an effort to conserve more land but does not aid in restoring parks that already have deferred maintenance and can potentially spread the thin budget even thinner. The National Parks have corporate partners and private philanthropy that help preserve and maintain them, and these posters will bring attention to this option to donate, as well as binging attention to the problem of the budget allotted to the National Park service through the federal government.
Parks Sketch
These images are the initial sketches for the project.
Parks Sketch
Parks Sketch
Rocky Mountain National Park Inspired Poster
The first in the poster series, this poster features the juxtaposition of the park well maintained versus if the lack of funding allows for deterioration of infrastructure. This poster features the QR code to resources for contacting representatives that can encourage an increase in the Parks Services budget. Each illustration in the series is based off of an image from the corresponding park that it was inspired by. The colors were influenced by the colors in the original images and the fonts of each poster were inspired by those used by the National Park Service.
Everglades National Park Inspired Poster
The second poster in the series, this poster also displays deterioration of infrastructure. The QR code on this poster directs the viewer to ways to donate directly to the Parks.
Grand Canyon National Park Inspired Poster
The third and final poster in the series, this poster shows a lack of maintenance as well as deterioration of landscape due to visitors improperly following park guidance and disturbing the fragile plant life of the desert ecosystem leading to erosion. This QR code shows the viewer corporate sponsors of the Parks enabling them to support companies that also support the Parks.
Citations
“About This Collection : Posters: WPA Posters : Digital Collections : Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.loc.gov/collections/works-progress-administration-posters/about-this-collection/.
Anderson Design Group. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.andersondesigngroupstore.com/a/collections/61-american-national-parks.
Doc, 2014.
https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/495294
Downey, Hannah. “The Great American Outdoors Act, Explained.” PERC, August 4, 2020. https://www.perc.org/2020/08/04/the-great-american-outdoors-act-explained/.
“How Are National Parks Funded?” National Park Foundation. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/how-are-national-parks-funded.
Lewis, John. “Text - H.R.1957 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Great American Outdoors Act.” Congress.gov, August 4, 2020. https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1957/text.
“National Parks to Get Long-Overdue Repairs.” The Pew Charitable Trusts. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2020/08/04/national-parks-to-get-long-overdue-repairs.
“What Is Deferred Maintenance?” National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/subjects/infrastructure/deferred-maintenance.htm.
Citations
“About This Collection : Posters: WPA Posters : Digital Collections : Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.loc.gov/collections/works-progress-administration-posters/about-this-collection/.
Anderson Design Group. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.andersondesigngroupstore.com/a/collections/61-american-national-parks.
Doc, 2014.
https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/495294
Downey, Hannah. “The Great American Outdoors Act, Explained.” PERC, August 4, 2020. https://www.perc.org/2020/08/04/the-great-american-outdoors-act-explained/.
“How Are National Parks Funded?” National Park Foundation. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/how-are-national-parks-funded.
Lewis, John. “Text - H.R.1957 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Great American Outdoors Act.” Congress.gov, August 4, 2020. https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1957/text.
“National Parks to Get Long-Overdue Repairs.” The Pew Charitable Trusts. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2020/08/04/national-parks-to-get-long-overdue-repairs.
“What Is Deferred Maintenance?” National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed June 7, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/subjects/infrastructure/deferred-maintenance.htm.
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