The North Face Awards Explore Fund Grant to Grand Teton National Park Foundation

Youth Conservation Program supports a national effort to increase outdoor exploration among youth in Grand Teton National Park

 Jackson, Wyoming, June 18, 2012—The North Face, has awarded an Explore Fund grant to Grand Teton National Park Foundation for Youth Conservation Program (YCP), a teen trail crew that begins a ten-week season today in Grand Teton National Park. The Explore Fund’s mission is to inspire and enable the next generation of explorers by funding nonprofit organizations that are working to reconnect children with nature. By encouraging an active healthy lifestyle and protection of our natural landscapes, a stronger connection of youth to the outdoors can be nurtured. Grand Teton National Park Foundation, Grand Teton National Park’s fundraising partner, brings young people into the park in an effort to build the next generation of outdoor enthusiasts and wilderness stewards.  Grand Teton National Park Foundation was selected from over five hundred applications submitted for the first of two grant cycles in 2012, because this valuable program provides a unique outdoor education for approximately twenty teens each summer while they complete much needed trail and historic site projects that significantly improve park resources. Since The Explore Fund was initiated in 2010, The North Face has provided $625,000 in grants to nonprofits working to connect youth to the outdoors.

“The Foundation is proud to be a part of the greater movement to immerse youth in our parks and to help them understand the importance of wilderness,” Leslie Mattson, the Foundation’s president, says.  “Funding from the North Face Explore Fund and many other donors is critical to bringing the youth trail crew to Grand Teton for another year.  This program addresses real needs in the park while introducing stewardship and the greater issues facing protected lands today.”

YCP was established in 2006 to provide a unique summer employment opportunity for young people in Grand Teton while also teaching about park history, natural resources, outdoor recreation, and a wealth of other topics.  The program reaches 16-19-year-olds, and their improvement projects have enhanced the experience of millions of park visitors each year.  YCP has provided more than 42,000 hours of valuable labor on park trails and historic sites—work that would not have been accomplished otherwise.  Since the Initiative’s founding, nearly 130 young people have been immersed in outdoor adventures and received a unique wilderness education.  The program also focuses heavily on youth development and includes leadership opportunities, mentoring, and teamwork and is unlike any other offered in the region due to the hands-on experiences and the potential for advancement into the park’s leadership academy and possible employment in the future. 

In addition, Grand Teton National Park Foundation has been able to advance this program exponentially with the support of it partner, Grand Teton National Park, and many funding partners.  Grand Teton recruits the students and trail crew leaders spend each day with the crew in the field, providing guidance and developing relationships.  Other park divisions also work with the crew to teach students about search-and-rescue services, fire, backcountry safety, and many other park-related topics.  This program would not be possible without generous individual, corporate, and foundation gifts and grants that bring critical funding each year to assure YCP will have the resources it needs to operate effectively.

“The Outdoor Foundation has identified that a barrier to getting youth outdoors is lack of opportunity for kids to learn about and actually get to outdoors. We believe this has to happen at a grass roots, community level,” said Ann Krcik, director of Outdoor Participation at The North Face. “During the granting process, we make a conscious effort to reflect on what we refer to as the virtuous cycle. We first need to provide the opportunity for kids to get outside and play. If we can provide them with an initial positive experience outdoors, they will grow up inspired to care about their natural world.”

The YCP trail crew operates each June to August. To learn more about Grand Teton National Park Foundation and YCP visit www.gtnpf.org.  For more information about The North Face Explore Fund, please visit www.explorefund.org

About Grand Teton National Park Foundation

Grand Teton National Park Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to fund projects that protect and enhance Grand Teton National Park’s treasured resources.  By funding initiatives that go beyond what the NPS could accomplish on its own, the Foundation initiates improvements, critical research, and projects that enhance visitors’ experiences, creating a solid future for Grand Teton.

About The North Face®

The North Face, a division of VF Outdoor, Inc., was founded in 1968. Headquartered in San Leandro, California, the company offers the most technically advanced products in the market to accomplished climbers, mountaineers, snowsport athletes, endurance athletes, and explorers. The company’s products are sold in specialty mountaineering, backpacking, running, and snowsport retailers, premium-sporting goods retailers and major outdoor specialty retail chains.

About PlanetExplore

PlanetExplore is an online community founded by The North Face, powered by partner organizations that share a passion for the outdoors, and designed to help individuals and families learn about and participate in outdoor activities and events in their area. PlanetExplore is a portal to the outdoors designed to inspire and enable people of all ages to become regularly active outside, and to enjoy the benefits gained through a connection to nature.