When Canada created a Dominion Parks Branch in 1911, it became the first country in the world to establish an agency devoted to managing its national parks. Over the past century this agency, now Parks Canada, has been at the center of important debates about the place of nature in Canadian nationhood and relationships between Canada s diverse ecosystems and its communities."

An illustrated, region-by-region guide to the national parks of Canada, offering sample itineraries and site-by-site tours, and providing historical information, location and activity descriptions, tips for travelers, maps, and lodging information with addresses, phone numbers, and price ranges.

During the Depression the Canadian National Parks Branch was under pressure to make the park system truly national, to bring the advantages of parks to all provinces. In Atlantic Canada, however, it found itself dealing with an environment that was far different from what it was accustomed to in Western Canada. The land areas were smaller, flatter, and, having been settled for generations, could hardly be considered wild. Wildlife was smaller and less numerous.

In Taking the Air, Paul Kopas takes a comprehensive approach to the policy aspects of the management of parks and protected areas. He scrutinizes the policy-making process for national parks since the mid-1950s and interrogates the rationale and policies that have governed their administration. He argues that national parks and park policy reflect not only environmental concerns but also the political and social attitudes of bureaucrats, citizens, interest groups, Aboriginal peoples, and legal authorities. He explores how the goals of each group have been shaped by the historical context of park policy, influencing the shape and weight of their contributions.

This document is a comprehensive statement of broad principles that give direction both to present programs and future initiatives of Parks Canada. It provides a framework for the delivery of heritage programs and for responsible management decisions that reflect the national interest while being sensitive to local considerations. It explains how the federal government, within the context of Parliamentary approvals, carries out its national programs of natural and cultural heritage recognition and protection as assigned to the Minister responsible for Parks Canada.

COVERS : Banff National Park, Elk Island National Park, Glacier National Park, Jasper National Park, Kootenay National Park, Mount Revelstoke National Park, Point Pelee National Park, Prince Albert National Park, Riding Mountain National Park, Waterton Lakes National Park, Yoho National Park.

A status report of the National Park System in each of Canada's 39 National Park Natural Regions, containing information on geography, vegetation, wildlife, photographs, descriptions and maps.