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

Federal Cooperative Agreement Summary

The National Park Service (NPS) awarded Conservation Legacy (doing business as Southwest Conservation Corps) a Cooperative Agreement valued at $189,440 under the Youth and Veteran Organizations Conservation Activities program (CFDA 15.931) on September 16, 2025. The award funds two 52-week intern positions at Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina through December 31, 2026. The interns will develop spatial and non-spatial digital datasets to support Hurricane Helene recovery projects and facilitate permitting and planning for transportation, utility, and fiber optic infrastructure projects that intersect with the parkway. Additionally, the interns will create digital process automation tools designed to streamline permitting workflows, reduce processing timelines, and minimize conflicts between project activities and visitor experiences.

This cooperative agreement supports the NPS program's broader mission of engaging youth and veteran-serving nonprofits in natural and cultural resource conservation on Department of the Interior lands. Conservation Legacy, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Durango, Colorado, specializes in recruiting and training youth and veteran crews ages 16–35 for conservation and resource management work across NPS sites nationwide. The intern positions represent targeted workforce development with direct operational benefits to the Blue Ridge Parkway's administrative and planning functions.

This program seeks to utilize qualified non-profit youth and veteran serving organizations to carry out appropriate natural and cultural resource conservation, education, and volunteer service projects on department of the interior lands through authorized national park service programs. The project will hire two interns at the blueridge parkway for 52-week terms to focus on two main objectives: first, to develop spatial and non-spatial digital datasets that support recovery projects related to hurricane helene, as well as permitting and planning for transportation, utility, and fiber optic projects that intersect with the blue ridge parkway. Second, the interns will create digital process automation tools designed to efficiently utilize these datasets, aiming to reduce permitting timelines and minimize conflicts between project activities and visitor experiences.