Friday, October 23, 2026 from 2-3:30pm in the Kingsley Room, join us for a talk about the National Parks.
Richard Benfield will give an illuminating lecture on the history of the National Park Service over the past 100-plus years: from parks having to be guarded by the army, to the extirpation of apex predators like wolves and cougars, to roads cutting through miles of pristine wilderness. Today, the 433 individual park units are loved by 292 million visitors -- some would say loved to death -- and face a crowded and uncertain future.
The presentation will be drawn from Mr. Benfield's five years working with the Canadian National Parks system, his ten years teaching the National Parks and World heritage Sites course at CCSU, and his travels to over 135 countries to visit and assess their National Parks system. The nature of the 63 parks in the USA as well as National Parks in East Africa, the Himalayas, South-East Asia and South America will be discussed.
Like all Southbury Public Library programs, this program is free to attend and open to anyone regardless of town of residency. Registration is required. This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Southbury Library. Please visit the link below for more information and to register.
Registration Link:
In Person https://www.southburylibrary.org/event/NationalParks