Park Advocacy Day

On February 27, 2024 Parks & Trails New York and the Open Space Institute hosted the 18th annual Park Advocacy Day. Traditionally, park supporters from across the state, dubbed “the green scarf brigade” gather in Albany to meet with state legislators to connect on the value our great parks bring to their constituencies, economy and community. This year, we set out with a goal to gather 100 advocates at the state capitol to celebrate the 100th birthday of New York State Parks & Historic Sites and we were blown away by how many of people traveled across the state to speak on the value of our public lands to our state’s decision makers.

With more than 130 advocates representing nearly 50 Friends groups and a dozen partner organizations, we were able to meet with over 80 legislative offices throughout the day - more than double our impact from last year!

We expect the one-house responses to the Governor's budget proposal to be released within the next two weeks. Sign up to receive PTNY's newsletter to receive updates about the state budget.

You can continue to make an impact for NY’s public lands...

Encourage your family, friends, and members to connect with their representatives

Visit PTNY’s “Take Action” page to write a quick letter to our state decision-makers, supporting our requests from Park Advocacy Day. These actions are easy to share with your networks so you can encourage your members/friends/donors who were unable to make it last week to also speak on behalf of our public lands.

Write a letter to your state representatives

Lend a hand and dedicate some of your time at an upcoming volunteer event

PTNY along with our agency partners will be hosting four statewide volunteer events at our state public lands this year, starting on Earth Day weekend with Canal Clean Sweep. Join us in ensuring these lands are not only properly funded, but also welcoming, clean, and accessible for ALL New Yorkers.