Posted: August 21st, 2008

Woody Smeck, Superintendent, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, writes:

Dear Friends:

This past week former U.S. Senators J. Bennett Johnston, Jr. (D-La) and
Howard H. Baker (R- TN) announced they are convening a year-long, blue
ribbon commission to recommend policies for the National Park System in the
next century. The system will turn 100 in 2016. The commission (National
Parks Second Century Commission) will conduct the first of four meetings at
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area on August 25-26, 2008.
Subsequent meetings will be held at Yellowstone NP, Great Smoky Mountains
NPS, Lowell NHP, and Gettysburg NMP. As Senator Johnston indicates “never
before has a group of this caliber, independent and non-partisan, convened
to conduct a comprehensive examination of the state of the national parks
today, and their potential for the future ” The commission’s work will
culminate in a report to be issued Fall 2009.

The selection of Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area as the
initial meeting location underscores the strategic importance of urban
national parks. It also recognizes the model programs of NPS, California
State Parks, SMMC, and others in preserving resources and connecting urban
and suburban audiences to nature and places of historical significance.
During the meeting, we will have an opportunity to provide commissioners
with a brief tour of the mountains and discuss challenges and opportunities
for managing parks in a complex urban-wildland interface. A panel of
distinguished conservationists and park advocates will also share their
views.

[The City Project's Robert Garcia will testify before the Commission on August 26.]

Commission members include:

Howard H. Baker, Former Senator and Co-Chair
J. Bennett Johnston, Former Senator and Co-Chair
Sandra Day O’Connor, Former Supreme Court Justice
Deny Galvin, Former Deputy Director of National Park Service
Linda Bilmes, professor of Public Policy, Harvard University’s
Kennedy School of Government;
James Blanchard, former Governor of Michigan (D);
Milton Chen, executive director, The George Lucas Educational
Foundation;
Rita Colwell, distinguished professor, Johns Hopkins School of Public
Health;
Sylvia Earle, explorer-in-residence, National Geographic Society;
John Fahey, president, National Geographic Society;
Belinda Faustinos, executive director, San Gabriel & Lower Los
Angeles Rivers & Mountains Conservancy;
Victor H. Fazio, former U.S. Representative (D-Calif.);
Carolyn Finney, assistant professor, Environmental Science,
University of California, Berkeley;
Maria Hinojosa, senior correspondent for NOW newsmagazine for PBS;
Sally Jewell, chief executive officer, Recreational Equipment, Inc.
(REI);
Tony Knowles, former Governor of Alaska (D);
Stephen H. Lockhart, chairman of the board, Yosemite National
Institutes; * Gretchen Long, former chair, Cary Institute of
Ecosystem Studies;
James McPherson, George Henry ’86 Professor of American History
Emeritus, Princeton University;
Gary B. Nash, professor emeritus, Department of History, University
of California, Los Angeles;
Rob Portman, former director, Office of Management and Budget;
Timothy J. Roemer, former U.S. Representative (D-Ind.);
Jerry L. Rogers, former associate director for Cultural Resources,
National Park Service;
Deborah A. Shanley, dean, Brooklyn College School of Education;
Peter M. Senge, senior lecturer, Sloan School of Management,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
W. Richard West, founding director emeritus, National Museum of the
American Indian;
Margaret Wheatley, board president Emerita and Management Consultant
on Organizational Behavior, Berkana Institute; and
Edward O. Wilson, Pelligrino University Research Professor, Harvard
University.

If you are interested in learning more about the commission, please go to
www.visionfortheparks.org.

____________________________________________________
Woody Smeck, Superintendent
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
401 West Hillcrest Drive
Thousand Oaks, California 91360-4207
Ph (805) 370-2344
FAX (805) 370-1850