This program utilizes qualified non-profit youth- and veteran-serving organizations to carry out appropriate natural and cultural resource conservation, education, volunteer service and education…

The National Park Service, under the Youth and Veteran Organizations Conservation Activities program (CFDA 15.931), awarded a $157,612.21 cooperative agreement to American Conservation Experience (ACE) on June 19, 2025, with completion scheduled for December 31, 2026. ACE will deliver internship and training programs for young adults at Saguaro National Park in Tucson, Arizona, focused on invasive plant management and wildlife monitoring. Interns will receive comprehensive training in safety protocols, data collection methodologies, and herbicide application techniques while performing hands-on conservation work including invasive species mapping and removal, wildlife monitoring, and fire effects assessment.

The primary deliverables include ecological resource condition data and documentation of treatment effectiveness from the invasive species management and wildlife monitoring activities. The award aims to develop a skilled workforce capable of managing natural resources while simultaneously advancing Saguaro National Park's ecosystem management objectives and benefiting surrounding communities. The program serves as a career development pathway for young adults, addressing both critical park resource management needs and workforce training goals consistent with the Youth and Veteran Organizations Conservation Activities program's dual mandate of environmental stewardship and youth employment development.

This program utilizes qualified non-profit youth- and veteran-serving organizations to carry out appropriate natural and cultural resource conservation, education, volunteer service and education projects on department of the interior lands through authorized national park service programs. This project provides internships for young adults at saguaro national park, focusing on invasive plant management and wildlife monitoring. Interns will receive training in safety, data collection, and herbicide application, gaining hands-on experience in mapping, removing invasive species, and assessing fire effects. Deliverables include data on resource conditions and treatment effectiveness. The expected outcome is a skilled workforce capable of managing natural resources, benefiting the park s ecosystem and surrounding communities.beneficiaries include private non-profit institutions and organizations public and private non-profit academic institutions state and local government agencies quasi-public non-profit institutions and organizations that support youth and young adult career training and development, and education in the areas of natural and or cultural resource conservation and management. Individuals families students and the general public will receive a benefit from the development and execution of these programs and projects.