Healthy Parks Healthy People

Our Vision

Parks Contribute to a Healthy, Just, and Sustainable World.

 

NPS/Hannah Schwalbe

Healthy Parks Healthy People is founded on the idea that parks can be gateways to good health—for people and the planet.

Healthy Parks Healthy People works with partners and interdisciplinary teams in the sectors of public health, medicine, conservation, and recreation to put a spotlight on the role of parks as social determinant of health.

The National Park Service has long been recognized as the custodian of our most treasured landscapes, cityscapes, and seascapes. These resources – that nurture, sustain, and inspire us are now being valued and understood for their collective benefits as health resources.

The National Park Service is putting parks to work for your health —and the results are social, environmental, and economic benefits.

 

NPS Photo

3 Healthy Parks Goals

1. The National Park Service is a healthy place.

2. Healthy Parks Healthy People contributes to the health of parks and ecosystems.

3. Improvements to and maintenance of, existing and new facilities,programs, and environments optimize overall health benefits.

 

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4 Healthy People Goals

1. NPS employees are ambassadors for healthy living.

2. People are inspired to improve their health in parks.

3. Community engagement and partnerships amplify healthbenefits of parks.

4. Healthy Parks Healthy People enhances the economic wellbeing and resiliency of local and regional communities.

 

Ten kids jumping off dune at Great Sand Dunes National Park.

NPS Photo

Our 10 Guiding Principles

1. We promote health and wellbeing as an interrelated system linking human health to natural landscapes and all species.
2. Our work takes place both within and beyond park boundaries.
3. We encourage uses that promote the health of all species while avoiding those that impair resources.
4. Our aim includes activities that contribute to physical, mental, and spiritual health, and social wellbeing.
5. We seek to provide equitable access to open spaces and natural places.
6. We seek expertise and resources from a wide range of partners in the public and private sectors.
7. Our commitment to improving public health will be mirrored in internal programs for our workforce.
8. We seek to provide a wide range of ways for people at all levels of health and wellness to improve their physical, mental, and spiritual health, and social well-being.
9. We promote our nation’s parks, open spaces, and places of cultural and historical significance as a powerful health resource—engaging multiple stakeholders and partners to think more broadly about the role these places play.
10. We seek to eliminate health disparities by providing equitable access to parks, open spaces, and places of cultural and historical significance—enabling all people to experience the health benefits these can help create.

 

Community Volunteer Ambassadors Jumping for Joy.

NPS/Joshua Hamburg

Join Us!

• Share your story on social media to show how you find health and happiness in the park.
• To get started, check out ideas for enjoying nature's health benefits where ever you are —even if you can't get to your favorite park. We have some tips for getting your dose of nature from the window, the backyard, the neighborhood, at work, and virtually.
• Share your experience on social media #BeforeAndAfterParkRx and you may be featured in our official National Park Service #BeforeandAfterParkRx photo gallery!

Use Hashtags: #BeforeAndAfterParkRx #HealthyParksHealthyPeople, #NatureForAll, #PowerOfParksForHealth

We welcome all people, from all walks of life to join in the Healthy Parks Healthy People movement.

What are you waiting for? There are more than 400 national parks across the country with countless opportunities to find health, healing and happiness in a park near you.

Come on out, have some fun, learn something, and get healthy.

 

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Learn more about how we are putting parks to work for your health on our Healthy Parks Healthy People home page.