Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore could accurately be described as an "urban" park. Its location on Lake Michigan is rimmed by Indiana towns and cities such as Gary, Hammond, Portage, Valparasio, and Michigan City. And, understandably, the residents of those communities have a vested interest in the lakeshore's future. That's where the National Park and Conservation Association's "National Park, Regional Treasure" program comes into play.

Plans by the state of Indiana to build a hardened stone seawall along a portion of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore don't sit well with lakeshore officials, who cite a number of problems, including the lack of permits from the National Park Service and requisite environmental studies.

If you thought round gobies and zebra mussels were scary invaders of the Great Lakes, brace yourself for the arrival of Asian carp, a voracious fish that could decimate the lakes' native fisheries.

Not many of us are old enough to have attended the 1933 World's Fair. But if you head to Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore next weekend, you'll be able to go back in time.

Reducing visitor accidents in parks is an enormous—and ongoing—challenge. The staff at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore decided to try a different approach to reduce the risk of drownings, and it paid off in a big way. The tally for the summer of 2009: zero drownings.

Change is under way in the Great Lakes, the source of 84 percent of North America’s fresh water and more than 20 percent of the world’s supply. It is a progressive sweeping change that threatens to greatly transform the ecosystems of these inland seas by warming their waters and supplanting native species with harmful invasives. And it is a change that ultimately may threaten the viability of the common loon and dozens of other birds that depend on the lakes.

A kayaking expedition and landing site programs inaugurated the Southern Lake Michigan Water Trail on June 13-14. The new paddling route, which extends 40+ miles between Chicago and Michigan City, includes a 15-mile stretch of the waters and shoreline at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.

The latest species tally from the BioBlitz at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore: 1,716. How high will it go?

How much life is there at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore? That's a good question, one you can help answer by participating in the lakeshore's 'BioBlitz.' But time is running out to sign up.

Rehabilitation projects, invasive species eradication and biodiversity research were among the $27 million worth of Centennial Initiative projects for the National Park System announced Tuesday by Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne and NPS Director Mary Bomar.

A former brownfield on the Lake Michigan shoreline now sports a marvelous new recreational facility. The Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is finally up and running, thanks to years of planning, an innovative partnership, and a $10 million construction project incorporating green technology.

According to this park's administrative history, it was the first area considered for addition to the newly-established national park system by the agency's first director, Stephen T. Mather. Mather visited the area in October 1916, but fifty years would elapse before a bill authorizing the park was finally passed.

The torrential rains, high winds, and flooding that plagued northwest Indiana as the remnants of Hurricane Ike passed through were some of the worst on record. They left a big mess at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, too. The big storm came at an awkward time, necessitating hurry-up cleanup and repairs to get the new Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk ready for dedication ceremonies on October 16.

How many hats should we expect national park rangers to wear? Already we expect them to cover law enforcement, interpretation, and backcountry patrols, and to be quick to put on their "search and rescue" hat when need arises. Should they also be lifeguards or, perhaps more generally, safety officers to protect park visitors, at times from themselves?

Loons, mergansers, cormorants and other waterfowl are dying by the thousands in the Great Lakes due to an invasion of non-native species that are threatening to turn the lakes' ecosystem upside down. At Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes National Lakeshore even piping plovers, a threatened species, are dying.

There are parks across the national park system that have decidedly watery settings: Voyagers National Park, Isle Royale National Park, Channel Islands National Park, Acadia National Park, Biscayne National Park and Dry Tortugas National Park, just to name some of the most obvious. And then there are the national lakeshores.