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Guanacos (members of the
Camelid family) in Perito Moreno National Park, Santa Cruz,
Argentina |
The National Park Service has been a leader in the global national park
movement. The world's first national park Yellowstone was established
by the United States Congress in 1872. Since then, the idea of creating
nationally significant parks has spread to over 100 countries. The National
Park Service also provides technical assistance and advice to countries
around the globe.
In addition, natural resources such as air, water, and
animals cross international boundaries. An example from
the Partners in Flight web site is neotropical bird migrants,
species that breed in the Nearctic (North America) and
winter in the Neotropics (Central and South America).
Partners In Flight / Compañeros en Vuelo / Partenaires
d'Envol was launched in 1990 in response to growing concerns
about declines in the populations of many land bird species,
and to emphasize the conservation of birds not covered
by existing conservation initiatives. The central premise
of Partners
In Flight has been that the resources of public and
private organizations in North and South America must
be combined, coordinated, and increased in order to achieve
success in conserving bird populations in this hemisphere.
In 1970, the United Nations created the Man and the
Biosphere (MAB) program to provide a framework for global
cooperation in finding solutions to environmental programs.
Under the auspices of the U. S. MAB Program, a site that
is representative of a biogeographic province may be
designated a Biosphere Reserve if other criteria are
met too. Such sites are dedicated to research on the
function and management of ecosystems and on ways to
support sustainable, integrated development.
Some places transcend time and national boundaries and
become the common inheritance of mankind. These places
are now given international recognition as World Heritage
Sites or Biosphere Reserves. Mammoth Cave National Park
is just one example of a park that has been designated
a World Heritage Site and part of an International Biosphere
Reserve.
Several NPS sites have established "sister park" relationships
in the last few years with national parks in other countries.
These partnerships increase information sharing and direct
park-to-park Contact, primarily through the use of improved
telecommunications technologies.
