Parks in Focus began in 1999 with an idea: take a group of underserved kids to nearby parks and open their eyes to the wonders of nature by focusing their gaze through the lens of a camera. The first trip introduced youth from Tucson and Phoenix to Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northern Arizona; over the next five years weeklong trips to Sedona, Flagstaff, Pinetop, and the Grand Canyon secured strong partnerships in Arizona with both the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson and Grand Canyon National Park.  

By 2005, the impact of the program on trip participants and trip leaders was so significant the Udall Foundation began to discuss expansion beyond the current scope of one trip each summer for Tucson kids.  We recruited from our network of over 1,000 Udall Scholarship alumni - scholars selected for their commitment to environmental careers and public service - and trained them to lead and help further develop the concept of Parks in Focus.

Since then we’ve provided opportunities for middle school students from Boys & Girls Clubs in New Jersey, Michigan, Maine, Washington, Wyoming, and California.  We’ve put cameras in their hands; field guides in their pockets; and guided them into canyons, through creeks, over boulders, and past ruins. The landscapes they’ve explored, the birds they’ve identified by their calls alone, and the miles of trails (both wet and dry) trod upon by sneakers that rarely venture off concrete have opened doors to each and every participant in Parks in Focus.

Watch the video

“I salute the Morris K. Udall Foundation for creating the Parks in Focus program and working with local Boys & Girls Clubs and individual national parks to give youngsters who might never have the chance to get out into the great outdoors the opportunity to explore a national park.” 

~ Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, April 20, 2009