If nothing else, last week's Leadership Summit on Partnership and Philanthropy hosted by the National Park Foundation demonstrated that some major corporations want to support the national parks. The question that lingers, though, is to what extent?

Now the hard work begins. Congress needs to be cajoled, new-found friends need to cash-in, and the national park system needs some loving attention if the National Park Service's centennial nine years hence is to truly be noteworthy.

At the very least, there's a great deal of excitement at the National Park Foundation's Leadership Summit in Texas, and right behind that there's a good amount of cheerleading. But along with those two aspects, there are a few questions that beg answers.

"America's Best Idea." It is a mantra that has been repeated for decades when talk turns to the United States' national park system, an idea that some proudly say has been exported around the world. But during the National Park Foundation's Leadership Summit in Austin, Texas, at least one participant voiced concern that America is failing the global national parks movement.

Kurt's covering the National Park Foundation Leadership Summit down in Austin, but if you can't be there, you can catch a live web broadcast of the event. Here is the URL (read more)

Thank you Morton Meyerson. In case anyone at the National Park Foundation's Leadership Summit on Partnership and Philanthropy was wondering, giving to the national parks shouldn't be focused solely on brick and mortar projects.

Does Autumn not exist in Austin, Texas? I left drizzle and 45 degrees in Park City, Utah, yesterday morning, and here in Austin it might as well be mid-summer, with the highs approaching 90 degrees. Is that a good atmosphere for incubating "the next century of our parks"?

A first-of-its-kind, invitation-only gathering convenes in Austin, Texas, this weekend to discuss philanthropy and partnerships in the national parks. Hosted by the National Park Foundation, the Leadership Summit on Partnership and Philanthropy is intended to raise awareness of park philanthropy and bolster charitable giving to the park system.