The National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) and the USDA Forest Service are excited to announce that this year’s National Public Lands Day (NPLD) Signature Event will take place at the Washington Youth Garden in the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC, on Saturday, September 28, 2024.
Each year, NEEF partners with a public lands site to host the NPLD Signature Event, offering participants the chance to engage in meaningful conservation work, celebrate public lands, and participate in educational activities that underscore NPLD's importance for the stewardship and appreciation of America’s public lands. This year, the Washington Youth Garden, a one-acre green space established in 1971 to teach horticulture and life skills to local elementary students, will host the event for the first time in its 52-year history.
“This year's NPLD theme, ‘Together for Tomorrow,’ emphasizes the importance of caring for public lands for future generations,” said Sara Espinoza, president and CEO of NEEF. “The Youth Garden is an example of this commitment, serving both as a space we must care for and as a tool to help young people understand the value of green spaces and their role in protecting them.”
The celebration will also mark the kickoff of the Veterans and Nature: Enhancing Well-being through Outdoor Experiences grant project at the site. This grant program, a collaboration between NEEF and the Forest Service, aims to increase veterans' engagement with nature by highlighting its physical and mental health benefits through health-focused outdoor activities. Grant awardee Friends of the National Arboretum (FONA) will lead a closed NPLD service project for veterans service organizations. This event is part of a broader grant effort that includes forest bathing sessions with a certified nature and forest therapy guide and additional volunteer days at the Youth Garden.
The public is invited to celebrate NPLD in the Youth Garden with family-friendly activity stations from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The garden will come alive with a variety of different activity stations and demonstrations to add to the visitor experience. Attendees can sample local honey made from area pollinators, learn how to use a composting and vermiculture bin, attend a short forest bathing session, hear stories about the famous Buffalo Soldiers, and more. It’s a perfect chance for families to tour the Youth Garden for the first time or to make a return visit to see it activated in a whole new way in celebration of National Public Lands Day.
This event is just one of hundreds happening across the country on Saturday, September 28. For more information about National Public Lands Day, including how to find volunteer events in your area, please visit NEEFusa.org/NPLD.