Using credible resources, find information about cities or towns in the surrounding areas of your national park.

Using credible resources, find information about cities or towns in the surrounding areas of your national park. Information that will be useful to you may include population density in surrounding areas, growth of the population over a period of time, local economies, and resource usage.

Using the information gathered, describe in your discussion post how the national park and the human population interact with one another.

Things to consider:

Does the park attract tourists that supports a booming local economy?

Does the park support good environmental conditions for wildlife to spill beyond park boundaries and support local hunting and fishing practices?

Does having a nearby protected area create better environmental conditions for cities and towns?

How does the national park affect population growth?

How is the environment of the park affected by people visiting the park?

Does an increase in tourism have positive or negative impacts on the park and surrounding cities?

If both, do the positives outweigh the negatives or vice versa?

****You may describe responses to all of these questions or narrow your focus to a few of these questions, whichever is most fitting to your area. However, this information will be presented in your final presentation, so your response needs to be thoughtful and well-researched.