National Parks Traveler Podcast | National Park Science At Risk

National Parks Traveler Podcast | National Park Science At Risk

Author: Kurt Repanshek April 20, 2025 Duration: 37:52

There has been much upheaval in the National Park Service this year, with firings, then rehires, and staff deciding to retire now rather than risk sticking around and being fired. There have been fears that more Park Service personnel are about to be let go through a reduction in force. 

While Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has ordered the Park Service to ensure that parks are properly to support the operating hours and needs of each park unit," that message said nothing about protecting park resources.

 Among all this upheaval the question that goes begging is whether the Interior Department is as concerned about protecting natural resources, including wildlife, as it is about seeing that visitors have a good national park experience?

Our guest today is Dr. Michael Soukup, who during his National Park Service career served as the agency's chief scientist. When he joined the Park Service in 1975 Dr. Soukup, a distinguished coastal ecologist, biologist and researcher, brought a clear vision for natural resource stewardship that would be embraced throughout the NPS and supported by visitors and local citizens.
  
He was directly responsible for launching the Natural Resource Challenge, a $100 million funding initiative that brought the protection of natural resources of the parks to the forefront. 


There's a world of stories waiting beyond the park entrance sign, and the National Parks Traveler Podcast is your audio guide to them. Led by Kurt Repanshek, this series goes deeper than trail maps and visitor statistics. It connects the natural wonder you experience firsthand with the crucial, often unseen work happening behind the scenes-the science informing conservation, the cultural histories embedded in the landscape, and the policy decisions that will shape these places for future generations. As the audio companion to the editorially independent nonprofit media organization, this podcast delivers a thoughtful blend of on-the-ground reports, interviews with researchers and park staff, and nuanced discussions about the challenges and triumphs in managing protected areas. You'll hear the sounds of the parks and the voices of the people dedicated to them. Each episode is an invitation to better understand the complex tapestry of ecology, history, and society that makes every national park far more than a scenic destination. Tune in for a regular dose of insight that will deepen your appreciation and perhaps even shape your next journey into America's most treasured public lands.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

National Parks Traveler Podcast
Podcast Episodes
National Parks Traveler Podcast | ESA's Future [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Since this past December here at the Traveler we've been bringing you a series of stories on the Endangered Species Act and the threatened and endangered species it's intended to keep from going extinct. For me, it's bee…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Rethinking Public Lands Stewardship [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Public lands stewardship has most definitely changed under the second presidential administration of Donald Trump. Land-management agencies such as the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, and Bureau of Land Manag…
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A fast-track proposal to develop a gold mine near Alaska's Cook Inlet and Lake Clark National Park and Preserve is alarming scientists, environmental groups and local communities because of the devastating effects it is…
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We're living in somewhat tumultuous times in the print media industry. Well-familiar titles are either disappearing, shrinking drastically, or shifting over to the internet. On top of that, the advent of Artificial Intel…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Chief Storyteller [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:46
National parks provide us with so many services, from providing us with inspiration, allowing us to leave our stress behind for a few hours or a few days, offering a recreational outlet, and enabling us to pursue hobbies…
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Duration: 52:57
Across the United States, there are many thousands of collisions between vehicles and wildlife each year, killing people and animals and causing millions of dollars in property damages. Some solutions revolve around crea…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Polluting Parks With Light [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:35
You might not entirely appreciate the wonders and majesty of national parks unless you venture out after dark and gaze up at what often is referred to as the other half of the national park system. The view can be quite…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Florida's Ailing Reef [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:44
Warming oceans, pollution, more potent hurricanes, anchor drops, dredging and trawling. The Florida Reef struggles with a lot of impacts today. In fact, only about 2 percent of the reef that stretches some 350 miles from…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Managing Capitol Reef's Visitors [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:16
Capitol Reef National Park in Utah is one of the Mighty Five, as the state likes to say in its tourism promotions, and while it's somewhat off the beaten path, visitors are finding it. In 2024, visitation to the park was…