Amid the many targets of the Trump administration’s federal worker firing spree, a thousand US national park rangers were told on Valentine’s Day that they had lost their jobs. These rangers worked in education, search and rescue, maintenance, trail upkeep, parking, and operations. In other words, they helped keep the country’s 429 national park sites running, open, and safe for families and visitors.

In this week’s Climate Justice newsletter, we look at the fight for green spaces, national parks, and beyond. One of those parks is just a few minutes from where I live. My father has been a national parks volunteer for decades. Outdoor spaces, and especially parks, were an integral part of my upbringing and how I’m raising my own child to appreciate and care for the Earth.

But that has become increasingly difficult. Air pollution, heat waves, severe storms, wildfires, and other impacts of climate change make playing outside dangerous. What can be done to preserve and protect this essential part of childhood? And when it comes to the fair and just distribution of green spaces and parks, how can all communities have access to these resources?

Even before the Trump administration cuts, more and more park managers were turning to private philanthropies for operational and restoration dollars that should have been coming from the government. Could that be an issue?

Finally, it took decades of work by activists and others seeking to preserve and honor Indigenous history and culture, but several ancient Indigenous Hopewell culture locations have now been designated World Heritage sites.