Full Circle

Editor’s Note: NPCA’s new President and CEO Tiernan Sittenfeld stepped into her role March 1. The forthcoming issue of National Parks magazine, mailing soon, includes her first letter to NPCA members. We’re reprinting it here to share her reflections with all of our supporters.

FULL CIRCLE

When I was 15 years old, a month backpacking in the magnificent landscapes of Yellowstone and Grand Teton changed my life. I was struck by the breathtaking beauty and learned lasting lessons: how the burden of a heavy pack is eased by reaching a spectacular summit, how the pain of blisters fades with a swim in an icy alpine lake, and how strangers on the trail can become fast friends sleeping next to each other under the stars.

That summer, I also saw what had happened right outside the parks, where the forest had been devastated by clearcutting. I returned home with a new appreciation for our environment, a better understanding of its fragility, and the sense that I had found my calling.

This is not just another job to me ― this is core to who I am, the perfect intersection of my personal and professional passions.

I got right to work, starting my high school’s environmental club, writing a postcard to my representative to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and completing a National Outdoor Leadership School course in North Cascades National Park. I went off to Dartmouth College and afterward became a campus organizer and then a field director for West Coast environmental campaigns. That led me to apply for and receive a grant to work on the Roadless Rule, which resulted in protections for more than 58 million acres of our national forests.

Now, decades into a long career in environmental advocacy, I have the great honor of taking on the role of president and CEO of NPCA. I am humbled by the opportunity, and equally energized and inspired. This is not just another job to me ― this is core to who I am, the perfect intersection of my personal and professional passions.

Our parks and public lands mean the world to my family and me. And at this moment, when our nation feels so divided, the solace and common ground these one-of-a-kind treasures offer have never been more important. While our shared lands are increasingly under threat, NPCA has been fighting the good fight for more than a century, thanks to the dedication and support of park lovers like you, and there’s no stopping us now. I can’t wait to work alongside you to protect our beloved national parks today and ensure a better tomorrow.