Listen now | The National Parks are being defunded and compromised before our eyes. How long can the facade hold? You have to look beyond the bathrooms, Gloria says.
Hi there. I’m a former NPS ranger that left the park service this year because the hiring freeze destroyed my career prospects and I really appreciated the thoughtful discussion of what is happening in the parks. A piece I think is under discussed in the episode though is that the parks pre 2025 were already anemic on staffing and resources - the current situation is devastating and destructive but the pre Trump status quo was not sustainable. Case in point - in the discussion of privatization and a potential future of concessioner operated rangers, the argument was made that those folks would likely be seasonal - as opposed to a perception that the current NPS staff are permanent employees with job stability. To be clear - the park service currently relies on many many seasonal employees. Many of the park rangers taking books home to research and learn on the weekends are seasonal. Those seasonal employees are deeply dedicated but also under paid, with less rights in the workplace than their permanent colleagues, and often very little opportunity to move into permanent positions. That’s the life I and many other seasonal employees of the nps have lived - deep precarity. When we fight for public lands and public employees, we need to fight not for a return to the pre 2025 status quo but for something better.
Hi there. I’m a former NPS ranger that left the park service this year because the hiring freeze destroyed my career prospects and I really appreciated the thoughtful discussion of what is happening in the parks. A piece I think is under discussed in the episode though is that the parks pre 2025 were already anemic on staffing and resources - the current situation is devastating and destructive but the pre Trump status quo was not sustainable. Case in point - in the discussion of privatization and a potential future of concessioner operated rangers, the argument was made that those folks would likely be seasonal - as opposed to a perception that the current NPS staff are permanent employees with job stability. To be clear - the park service currently relies on many many seasonal employees. Many of the park rangers taking books home to research and learn on the weekends are seasonal. Those seasonal employees are deeply dedicated but also under paid, with less rights in the workplace than their permanent colleagues, and often very little opportunity to move into permanent positions. That’s the life I and many other seasonal employees of the nps have lived - deep precarity. When we fight for public lands and public employees, we need to fight not for a return to the pre 2025 status quo but for something better.