1200 5th Avenue
Suite 1118
Seattle, WA 98101
OR, WA
Located in Seattle, NPCA’s Northwest Regional Office works to protect the natural beauty, wild landscapes, diverse wildlife and rich heritage of the national parks in Oregon and Washington. Places like Mount Rainier and Crater Lake capture our imagination, while sites like the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park and the recently designated Manhattan Project National Historical Park remind us of our storied past. The variety of landscapes, both natural and cultural, and the proximity of parks to urban centers contribute to the unique character of the Cascadian region.
The staff of the Northwest Regional Office work on a range of critical park protection issues. Whether seeking the restoration of grizzly bears to the North Cascades, the protection of natural soundscapes in Olympic’s Hoh Rain Forest, or the preservation of wilderness at Crater Lake, the team’s campaigns succeed by partnering with new voices, building ties in local communities, and pushing for the advancement of the national park idea.
Northwest Regional Office Field Reports
These field reports provide timely updates and perspectives on issues of interest to our members and supporters in Oregon and Washington.
See more ›The Northwest staff also contribute to NPCA’s broader efforts to secure adequate funding for our national parks, to deepen our relationships with veteran service organizations by engaging this audience in recreation, service and advocacy, and broadening and strengthening support for our parks by engaging young adults in our Northwest Student Leadership Council. Buoyed by the establishment of Washington’s newest national park, Manhattan Project at Richland, they push for more inclusive storytelling in our parks and fight to get younger and more diverse audiences into the parks to broaden the base of national park supporters for years to come.
It’s an exciting time in the Northwest, and we hope you’ll join our efforts to preserve and enhance our park system for present and future generations
Beauty and Depth
Measuring nearly 2,000 feet deep, Crater Lake is the deepest body of fresh water in the U.S. and the ninth-deepest lake in the world.
More about the Northwest region
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Read more about Support Grizzly Bear Recovery in the North Cascades
NPCA at Work Support Grizzly Bear Recovery in the North Cascades Help the threatened grizzly bear thrive again in its native Pacific Northwest home.
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Read more about Keep Crater Lake Wild
NPCA at Work Keep Crater Lake Wild A wilderness designation will preserve Crater Lake, its wildlife and its outdoor recreation opportunities forever. It's time to give this iconic park the protection it deserves.
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Read more about Save the Wild Natural Sounds of the Olympic Peninsula
NPCA at Work Save the Wild Natural Sounds of the Olympic Peninsula The Hear Our Olympics campaign seeks to protect the natural sounds of Olympic National Park, an ancient refuge from noise pollution in the Northwest.
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Read more about Noisy Helicopter Training and National Parks Don't Mix
NPCA at Work Noisy Helicopter Training and National Parks Don't Mix Noisy helicopters and landing zones do not belong next door to our national parks, especially one with grizzly habitat and treasured wilderness. The Army has alternatives for training--and they use them now--but there is only one North Cascades National Park.
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— Jesse
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Read more about Mount Rainier to welcome new pilot reservation system for 2024
Press Release Mount Rainier to welcome new pilot reservation system for 2024 “A tip of a flat hat to the park rangers for responding to the calls of those who love Mount Rainier and want to protect it while enjoying it.” - Rob Smith, NPCA's Northwest Regional Director
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Read more about 9 Perfect Parks for a Winter Workout
Blog Post 9 Perfect Parks for a Winter Workout Are you determined to get outside, even if the air is brisk? These nine parks allow you to stay active outdoors and work up a healthy sweat, even — or especially — with a winter chill in the air.
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Read more about Poll: Most Americans Want Park Wildlife Better Protected
Blog Post Poll: Most Americans Want Park Wildlife Better Protected A majority of Americans believe more needs to be done to safeguard national park wildlife, a newly released NPCA poll shows.
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Read more about Legal Lifeline
Magazine Article Legal Lifeline Celebrating 50 years of the Endangered Species Act
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Read more about A Volcanic Blue Abyss
Blog Post A Volcanic Blue Abyss Crater Lake holds about 4.9 trillion gallons of water and ranks among the world’s deepest lakes. Learn how it formed and what scientists have found in its depths.
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Read more about Why Bringing Grizzlies Back to the North Cascades Is a Great Idea
Blog Post Why Bringing Grizzlies Back to the North Cascades Is a Great Idea 5 reasons NPCA supports the Grizzly Bear Restoration Plan recently announced by the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Read more about Congress Averted an October Shutdown. But What’s Next?
Blog Post Congress Averted an October Shutdown. But What’s Next? National parks are open, thanks to late-night actions by Congress Sept. 30. But parks could face the same situation in mid-November that they just narrowly avoided if long-term funding issues aren’t resolved soon.
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Read more about What a Federal Government Shutdown Means for National Parks
Blog Post What a Federal Government Shutdown Means for National Parks If Congress fails to pass appropriations bills by deadline, the federal government will shut down. This puts the National Park Service in the unfortunate but necessary position of having to close its parks — putting family vacations, school trips, park protection and local economies in jeopardy. Here are 10 frequently asked questions.
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Read more about A Clam Conundrum
Magazine Article A Clam Conundrum Olympic’s razor clam population has been struggling for years. Is disease to blame?
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Read more about 7 Tips for Telling Your Park Story Like a Documentary Photographer
Blog Post 7 Tips for Telling Your Park Story Like a Documentary Photographer We love national park photos, but posed images can’t tell the whole story — especially years later. An award-winning documentary photographer shares how to turn your family adventure into cherished memories.
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Read more about Communications Manager
Staff and Media Personnel Caitlyn Burford Caitlyn Burford joined NPCA in 2023 as a communications manager representing the Northwest, Southwest, and Pacific regions, along with NPCA’s work on national energy policy.
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Read more about Regional Haze Pollution in EPA Region 10
Resource Regional Haze Pollution in EPA Region 10 Strong state regional haze plans are critical to restoring clean air and clear skies to treasured places like Mount Rainier, Crater Lake and Olympic National Parks. Unfortunately, states in EPA’s Region 10 are failing to adequately cut air pollution impacting these parks and wilderness areas and communities. EPA’s Region 10, also known as the Pacific Northwest region, includes Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska.
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Read more about Ozone Fact Sheet
Fact Sheet Ozone Fact Sheet Ozone threatens the health of park visitors and contributes to the disease and death of park species such as the black cherry tree in the East and aspen and ponderosa pine in the West. National park ecosystems across the country are already showing damage from ground-level ozone pollution.
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Read more about Northwest Regional Office Field Reports
Report Northwest Regional Office Field Reports These field reports provide timely updates and perspectives on issues of interest to our members and supporters in Oregon and Washington.
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Read more about Northwest Student Leadership Council
Resource Northwest Student Leadership Council The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is excited to invite you to join the Northwest Student Leadership Council. The Northwest office of NPCA works in the community with partners, schools and business organizations in support of the 20 National Park units across Washington and Oregon. We have met many excited, talented student leaders who we would like to engage in fulfilling our mission to protect our national treasures for present and future generations.
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Read more about Hiking with Spoons
The Secret Lives of Parks Hiking with Spoons An advocate in the Pacific Northwest turned a frustrating hike into a mission to make parks more welcoming for the millions of people with disabilities and chronic illnesses.
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Read more about Park Talks
Regional Events Park Talks Join our NPCA community for virtual "Park Talks" to learn about our work and ways you can get involved.
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Read more about Northwest Student Leadership Council
Resource Northwest Student Leadership Council A core focus of the Northwest Regional Office is broadening and strengthening support for our parks, especially among younger folks.
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Read more about Growler Tracker
Resource Growler Tracker Have you heard the Growlers while visiting Olympic National Park? Let us know about it using our Growler Tracker tool.
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Read more about Hear Our Olympics
Video Hear Our Olympics Come explore the incredible soundscape of Olympic National Park in our new short film.
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Read more about 10 Ways to Be a Park Advocate
Resource 10 Ways to Be a Park Advocate Want to be an advocate for parks, but don't know where to start?
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Read more about Time for the Grizzly?
Video Time for the Grizzly? Now is the time to restore the North Cascades grizzly bear! The North Cascades Ecosystem is the only remaining grizzly bear population on the West Coast of the contiguous United States. Although grizzlies have lived in the North Cascades for thousands of years, biologists estimate that fewer than 10 remain today, making it the most at-risk bear population in North America.
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Read more about Senior Program Manager, Northwest Region
Staff Colin Deverell Colin is the Senior Program Manager of the Northwest Regional Office in Seattle, Washington.
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Read more about Wanted: Grizzly Bears?
Video Wanted: Grizzly Bears? NPCA is a proud sponsor of this public education video about the elusive North Cascades grizzly bear narrated by ecologist and filmmaker Chris Morgan.
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Read more about Regional Director
Staff Rob Smith Rob serves as the Regional Director of NPCA's Northwest Regional Office in Seattle, Washington. Rob’s environmental work has included work on land and wildlife protection, climate change, and air quality through lobbying officials and organizing local support for conservation measures.
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Read more about Program Manager, Northwest Region
Staff Graham Taylor Joining the Northwest Regional Office in the summer of 2015, Graham stays busy connecting people to parks in his role as Program Manager
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Read more about Director, Communications
Staff and Media Personnel Kati Schmidt Kati Schmidt is based in Oakland, CA, and leads media outreach and communications for the Pacific, Northwest, Northern Rockies, Alaska, and Southwest regions, along with NPCA's national wildlife initiatives.
Explore Our Parks
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A–H
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I-O
- John Day Fossil Beds National Monument ›
- Lake Chelan National Recreation Area ›
- Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area ›
- Lewis & Clark National Historical Park ›
- Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail ›
- Mount Rainier National Park ›
- North Cascades National Park ›
- Olympic National Park ›
- Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve ›
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P-Z
Preserve Our Parks
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