UM Common Reading Experience 2025: Leave Only Footprints
Books
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The Current State of the National Park System, Including the Impacts of COVID-19 on NPS Operations, Staff, Visitation, and Facilities
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Call Number: Available in the Library's Government Documents Y 4.EN 2:S.HRG.117-129 and onlinePublication Date: One Hundred Seventeenth Congress, first session May 26, 2021EXAMPLE OF A PRIMARY SOURCE. This is a Hearing before the Subcommittee on National Parks of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate. Includes a witness statement from film maker, Ken Burns. -
National Parks, Native Sovereignty
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Call Number: eBookPublication Date: 2024Promotes the theme of strategic collaboration, highlighting how Indigenous peoples assert agency and sovereignty in reconnecting with significant landscapes, and how non-Native scholars and park staff can incrementally assist Native partners in this process. -
Preserving Nature in the National Parks
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Call Number: Available in the Main Library SB482.A4 S44 1997 and online as an eBookPublication Date: 1999ocusing on the decades after the National Park Service was established in 1916, the author reveals the dynamics of policy formulation and change, as landscape architects, foresters, wildlife biologists, and other Park Service professionals contended for dominance and shaped the attitudes and culture of the Service. -
Soft Paths: how to enjoy the wilderness without harming it
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Call Number: GV191.4 .H36 1995Publication Date: 1995Written by former NOLS instructor, this updated copy of the 1988 original was the first book-length treatment of "Leave No Trace." -
Steep Trails
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Call Number: F594 .M95Publication Date: 2021Steep Trails offers the funny, charming, educational, and exalted wanderings of John Muir over nearly three decades of his life. John Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States, and founder of The Sierra Club.
The Civilian Conservation Corps
Mississippi State Parks
Visit the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks to explore state parks on their virtual state map.
North Mississippi State Parks include:
- George P. Cossar
- Hugh White
- J.P. Coleman
- John W. Kyle
- Lake Lowndes
- Tishomingo
- Tombigbee
- Trace
- Wall Doxey
News Articles and Scholarly Articles
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The Belly of the Beast: Prioritizing Survival Gear in AirplanesEXAMPLE of NEWS OPINION.
(The author of this student newspaper article (In'uli Toopetlook) is introduced in chapter 19 "Food" p. 233).
Toopetlook, I. (January 16). The belly of the beast: Prioritizing survival gear in airplanes. The Sun Star. https://www.uafsunstar.com/opinions/the-belly-of-the-beast-prioritizing-survival-gear-in-airplanes -
Your Attention Needs a Reset.EXAMPLE OF ONLINE NEWSPAPER
Smith, D. G. (2025, Aug 19). Your attention needs a reset. Try a walk in the park. The New York Times. Section D, p. 6. -
Kuwohi Name Restored to the Highest Peak in the Smokies
EXAMPLE of NEWS ARTICLE.
Liming, K. (2024, September 18). Kuwohi name restored to the highest peak in the Smokies: U.S. Board of Geographic Names approves Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians name change request. NPS.gov. https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/news/kuwohi-name-restored-to-the-highest-peak-in-the-smokies.htm -
Who Visits U.S. National Parks (and Who Doesn’t)? A National Study of Perceived Constraints and Vacation Preferences Across Diverse PopulationsEXAMPLE of SCHOLARLY ARTICLE.
Xiao, X., Lee, K. J., & Larson, L. R. (2021). Who visits U.S. national parks (and who doesn’t)? A national study of perceived constraints and vacation preferences across diverse populations. Journal of Leisure Research, 53(3), 404–425. https://doi-org.umiss.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/00222216.2021.1899776
Abstract:
The mission of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) is increasingly challenged by underrepresentation of visitors from low-income and racial/ethnic minority backgrounds. To better understand attributes of Americans who do and do not visit national parks, we used data from a national general population survey (N = 4,103) to examine the sociodemographic characteristics, constraints to visitation, and vacation preferences among three groups of NPS visitors (recent visitors, past visitors, and non-visitors). Results revealed significant differences in constraints and preferences among the three groups. Black, Hispanic, and lower-income respondents were least likely to visit NPS sites. Compared to White respondents, they were also less aware of NPS units, more concerned about safety, and more likely to prefer alternative vacations such as sporting events, theme parks, and socially and culturally oriented destinations. Results underscore the need for the NPS to enhance relevancy and diversity by providing attractive and accessible recreation opportunities for historically marginalized groups. -
Use This Complete List of all the U.S. National Parks to Plan Your Next TripEXAMPLE of MAGAZINE ARTICLE.
Vermillion, S. (2025, April 21). Use this complete list of all the U.S. National Parks to plan your next trip. Travel and Leisure. https://www.travelandleisure.com/trip-ideas/national-parks/how-many-national-parks-are-there -
Leave No Trace: How It Came to BeEXAMPLE of PEER-REVIEWED ONLINE ARTICLE.
Cole, D. (2018). Leave no trace: How it came to be. International Journal of Wilderness, 24(3).
Statistics
"The region in the United States that had the highest National Park Service visitation was the Southeast, with approximately 73.7 million visitors in 2023. This region includes the famous Great Smoky Mountains. The second-most visited region was the Pacific West, home to Yosemite National Park."
National Park Service. (April 5, 2024). Number of visits to National Park Service sites in the United States in 2023, by region (in millions) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved June 26, 2025, from https://www-statista-com.umiss.idm.oclc.org/statistics/1460050/national-park-visitation-by-region-us/
Streaming Video
The National Parks: America's Best Idea
Directed by Ken Burns
THE NATIONAL PARKS is the story of an idea as uniquely American as the Declaration of Independence: that the most special places in the nation should be preserved for everyone. The series traces the birth of the national park idea in the mid-1800s and follows its evolution for nearly 150 years, chronicling the addition of new parks through the stories of the people who helped create them.
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The Scripture of Nature, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 1The scripture of nature, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 1. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/scripture-nature-national-parks-americas-best/docview/1822700359/se-2
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The Last Refuge, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 2The last refuge, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 2. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/last-refuge-national-parks-americas-best-idea/docview/1822699983/se-2
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The Empire of Grandeur, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 3The empire of grandeur, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 3. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/empire-grandeur-national-parks-americas-best-idea/docview/1822700337/se-2
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Going Home, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 4Going home, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 4. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/going-home-national-parks-americas-best-idea/docview/1822701417/se-2
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Great Nature, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 5Great nature, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 5. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/great-nature-national-parks-americas-best-idea/docview/1822700182/se-2
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The Morning of Creation, in The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Episode 6The morning of creation, in the national parks: America's best idea, episode 6. Burns, K. (Director). (2009, Jan 01).[Video/DVD] Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved from http://umiss.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/audio-video-works/morning-creation-national-parks-americas-best/docview/1822700215/se-2
Mississippi Historical Sites and Monuments
While Mississippi does not have a National Park, it does house many national sites and monuments: