National Parks Committee Discusses How to Increase Attendance

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In Session I, the National Parks Service committee worked to identify possible solutions to the low attendance rates of the park.

A larger attendance rate would help to preserve the national parks by bringing in a larger sum of money therefore making it possible to increase the budget overall.

The committee members engaged in twelve minutes of informal debate, which resulted in three plans.

The first, “Snapshot,” suggested taking a survey of good photo locations in the parks to broadcast on social media. These spots of interest would be publicized on various instagram and snapchat pages in order to attract more people.

The second, “The Outsiders,” proposed attracting foreigners by creating a meeting of 100 nations to discuss the draw of the United States National Park System. It also included initiatives to appeal to local colleges and universities to offer discounts in hopes of attracting a younger generation, as well as employing more locals.

Finally, the third plan, “Come Fly With Me,” would collaborate with airlines such as Delta and American Airlines to decrease plane ticket prices to be able to get more people able to get appropriately priced transportation.

“Snapshot” and “The Outsiders” passed. However, “Come Fly With Me” failed.

Towards the end of the committee session, two additional plans were proposed -- though both of them failed.

The first “Park Attendance,” would have decreased the entrance fee to $50 to attract more visitors.

It also would have created a National Parks Day for teachers to educate their students on the various historical and environmental importance of these parks.

The other, “If You Can’t Beat Them Join Them,” proposed a collaboration with Google to create a map of the park along and more efficient advertising.

Session II convenes at 8:30 a.m.