Solving Contemporary Issues in Conservation Through a Market-Based International Park System

In 2016, the United States National Park Service celebrated its centennial, which caused a flurry of calls for reflection and recommendations for improvements for national parks.1 People began urging the national parks to reaffirm their commitment to conservation and recreation, along with encouraging more research.2 It seemed to be a natural time to revisit the original “justification for both Yosemite and Yellowstone park [that] was the protection of unique scenery in the national interest.”3 That being said, in light of developments in national parks over the last one hundred years, it is important to challenge or at least qualify that statement by revisiting a remark that James Bryce, the British Ambassador to the United States, made a century ago. Regarding national parks, he stated that “[w]e are . . . for the future.”4 Explicitly, he was emphasizing that the interest that national parks promote includes not only safeguarding the parks for the enjoyment of people alive now, but also being the stewards of these treasures for future generations, a sentiment that the American public agrees with today.5 Implicit in this statement from a British ambassador is the international component that was inherent in the national parks since the beginning. The history and development of the national park concept over the last one hundred years have confirmed that international aspect. Following the establishment of national parks in the United States, the rest of the world began to follow suit, as parks were developed all over the world.6 By the early twenty-first century, “over 100,000 [protected areas] covered more than 2 million km, or 12 per cent of the earth’s land surface . . . [and] [s]ystems of [protected areas] existed in every country.”7 Furthermore, it is time to recognize and capitalize upon the international nature of parks. With climate change and its associated damages, it is now more important than ever for parks to recognize that “national” parks are part of a global system.8 With this idea in mind, this paper argues for the creation of an international park system with a market-based model. This system would hopefully link some of the world’s greatest ecological treasures in a framework that would increase funding and collaboration among the nations to combat problems that the national parks are currently facing in regard to a change in climate, an increase in visitors, and a lack of funding.9 Part II of this paper outlines a history of the development of the national park idea around the world while highlighting examples of parks in different nations and the contemporary issues the parks are facing. Part III outlines different examples of international collaboration, including efforts concerning climate change and conservation. This part demonstrates the feasibility of the creation of an international park system by emphasizing that there are already systems in place from which nations can draw ideas. It also shows that many nations recognize that certain issues require an international solution. Part IV describes cap-and-trade systems as an example of using marketbased principles to confront environmental issues. Finally, Part V outlines the proposed international park system by stating its potential benefits as well as addressing potential concerns