1. Presenting the Past… as a Gift to the Future
Kim Bauer, Jordan Cooper, Emma Fajardo
Discovery
In recognizing this management issue, we identified three steps of communication
that culminate in visitor buy-in. Looking first at general available knowledge, then at the
current interpretation plan, and finally at the implemented presentation strategies, we
concluded the goal is to enhance visitor experience and buy-in.
Issue/Background
Visitor expectations of Moraine Park may not recognize human influence as part of
landscape dynamism. During our week in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) our group
observed Moraine Park’s interpretative efforts and discovered little communication
pertaining to human-environment relationships. By communicating Moraine Park’s continual
changes, better-informed stewards of RMNP will provide buy-in to park management.
Recommendations
We believe enhanced visitor experience will be promoted by adding interpretational
elements that aim for an understanding of human influence on landscape dynamism.
o Interactive Map
o 100th Year Anniversary
o Interpretative Management Plans
Knowledge
Plan
Presentation/
Interpretation
Visitor
Experience
 Presentation/Interpretation: Current presentations generalize the landscape changes
of Moraine Park.
o An inconsistent amount of information exists on the NPS website, RMNP
website, and in the Moraine Park Discovery Center.
o Current interpretation relies heavily on geology and prehistory, leaving an
opportunity to present human-environmental relationships.
 Knowledge: The RMNP’s library offers many
pertinent historical references.
o Resources are easily accessible for
expanded interpretations.
o Additional histories from the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries exist in bulk.
 Plan: The current interpretation handbook leaves
many opportunities for an increase in specificity.
o The Park’s interpretation handbook is at
least eight years old with little updates
since (digitization, inclusion of elk
management program, and American
Indian history)
o Several portions not only leave out specific
history pieces but also lack certain
histories all together.