Skip to Content
SIGN NOW: Support Funding for Local Parks
You can help support funding for local parks.
In America’s biggest cities, residents of neighborhoods of color have access to 44 percent less park space per person than those of white neighborhoods.
Communities with less park space are hotter in summer. They also have worse air quality and are more susceptible to catastrophic flooding.
Lack of access to parks is also associated with higher rates of disease, stroke, and obesity.
That’s why our Federal Relations team has been working around the clock to convince Congress to support robust funding for local parks.
Your help is needed to get Congress to act. Urge your legislators to support funding for local parks today!
To [Decision Maker],
I’m writing to urge you to support funding for local parks.
Parks and green space play an essential role in our communities. They provide economic value, emotional and physical health benefits, and bringing people together. But not everyone has equal access to the outdoors. Data shows that parks serving primarily nonwhite populations are half the size of parks that serve majority white populations. It also shows those parks serve five times as many people per acre.
A historic, one-time investment in local parks would stimulate job creation and economic activity. It would also expand park access for the one-in-three Americans who do not have a close-to-home park.
Parks are drivers of local economies. Local parks and recreation agencies generate more than $150 billion in economic activity and supported more than 1.1 million jobs nationwide. Additionally, parks and recreation spending on operations creates 23 jobs for every million dollars spent and 16 jobs for every million dollars spent on capital improvements. And more broadly, the outdoor recreation economy accounted for 2.2 percent ($563.7 billion) of current‐dollar gross domestic product (GDP) for the nation in 2022.
For these reasons, I strongly urge you to support robust funding for local parks. If we maximize the opportunities for all Americans to experience the health benefits of nature, then every community will be stronger, healthier, and more connected for generations to come.
Sincerely,
