Cooperative Agreement Between the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and American Trails
Fish and Wildlife Service · Opportunity F16AS00368
The recipient has been selected.
≈ 1 awards expected
Who can apply
- Nonprofits with 501(c)(3), other than higher education
About this opportunity
Task 1. Redesigning Website for Easier Search and Navigation Functions Starting in the late 1990s, American Trails (AT) began a collection of online trail resources ⿿ documents, web pages, and links for the trails community to utilize. This collection has grown to over 6,000 pages, all stored in static, HTML code that requires manual updating. While this method worked for us for many years, the mass amount of resources has led to a website that is loaded with information, but that can be difficult to navigate. A user may have to click through multiple pages to find a given resource. Our current search method, using Google indexing, can be helpful, but as a keyword-only search method, it often returns dozens of pages of articles for the user to sort through. AT proposes building a single, powerful Content Management System (CMS) to organize and store these resources ⿿ a system that will be powerful, fast, clear, and simple to use and that will provide an unparalleled resource library for the trails community including FWS users who have requested better access to information on the American Trails website. The Trail Resource CMS we propose will provide detailed search options ⿿ title, State, Agency, category, keywords, and full article text search of thousands of American Trails⿿ resources. Updating the website will make it easier for the American people as well as FWS employees to better help navigate the most current up to date information on wildlife trails, refuges, and considering habitat in trail planning, construction and maintenance. By updating to the CMS American Trails will be able to better organize data, make it more accessible and easier for FWS to look up information and find trail resources. Task 2. National Recreation Trails National Recreation Trails may be designated by the Secretary of Interior to recognize exemplary trails of local and regional significance in response to an application from the trail's managing agency, such as a management unit of FWS. Through designation, these trails are 5 recognized as part of America's national system of trails as authorized by the National Trail System Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-543). The FWS vision document ⿿Conserving the Future: Wildlife Refuges and the Next Generation⿝ recommends creative thinking about enabling visitors to learn about FWS resources: "We must actively encourage and provide new opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to connect with nature by visiting their national wildlife refuges, personally or virtually." Trails in particular can provide the low-impact managed use that can help meet FWS goals for the future. Designation of trails on FWS lands as NRTs has been identified by FWS staff as a way to encourage visitation of trails that would benefit from increased attention. Trails are a critical way that visitors discover the beauty, history, and natural heritage of the National Wildlife Refuge System, and NRT designation is a cost-effective way to provide visibility to Refuge resources. The NRT website and database are essential tools for reaching the public with up to date information on FWS trails and other recreation opportunities. In 2015, analysis of website visitation documented that 40,446 trails were searched and located using the database on average, per month, by the public. In addition, visitors printed out 5,636 trail records from the database. The cost for updating these online resources is minimal compared to traditional public information techniques such as staffing visitors' centers, printing brochures, and attending public events. Most of the FWS NRTs designated in 2008-2015 have included good information in their applications that can be used for website creation and to populate the NRT designation. However, older designations are typically sketchy with details. Information that is of most use to visitors includes trail description, directions to trailheads, points of interest, and related activities. Helping visitors know the trail location relative to cities and highways is also important, and this can be done both descriptively and via downloadable maps (provided by the Refuges). The database records also should link to Refuge websites where news, events, and current conditions are available. Finally, a photo gives a good identity to the trail and makes it more appealing as visitors search the database. Most Refuge websites do not provide much information on trails. The Featured NRT website pages are an opportunity to provide useful visitor information in an attractive article format that includes trail features, seasonal interest, route descriptions, photos, and digital maps. FWS identifies "special attention to opportunities offered for youth and people with disabilities" as a priority for visitor information. Finally, these pages are also a great way to recognize volunteers and Friends groups who help with construction, maintenance, and interpretation. All FWS-managed National Recreation Trails are good candidates for new Featured NRT pages. We will continue to identify which of the NRTs do not have an existing Internet presence. All of these pages will link to agency and nonprofit websites supporting the trails. Task 3. National Trails Training Partnership (NTTP) Refuge Managers need to build sustainable, cost-effective trails that provide the public with memorable experiences of wildlife and natural areas. Expertise in trail development and management, especially in important habitat areas, needs to reach staff as well as volunteers and cooperating organizations. The US Fish & Wildlife Service is a party to the 2011 memorandum of understanding for the National Trails Training Partnership (NTTP), which is an extension of the 2003-04 agreements that began this initiative to promote trail-related training. The current MOU among seven F