Gateway Sites

1. Internet resources for outdoor recreation research: http://sfbox.vt.edu:10021/y/yfleung/recres.html
   
   This site is an excellent website and gateway to resources on information on parks and tourism. The site is divided into research topics and also includes a resource list with useful links. Research topics include outdoor recreation planning and management, recreational issues on public lands, nature tourism, socio-psychological and ecological aspects of outdoor recreation and visitor education and communication.
   
   
2. National Recreation and Parks Association: http://www.nrpa.org
   
   The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) is a American, non-profit service organization dedicated to "advancing parks, recreation and environmental efforts that enhance the quality of life for all people". The NRPA strives to promote public awareness of the environmental and natural resource management aspects of recreation and leisure services. Under the main menu, a listing of related web pages provides links to leisure, recreation, tourism and park sites.
   
   
3. Recreation and Leisure Studies-Resources on the WWW: http://www.geog.ualberta.ca/als/rlsres.html This site, organized at the University of Alberta, provides linkages for research on recreation and leisure studies. Much of the information is related to parks and tourism research.
   
   
4. Protected Areas Virtual Library: http://www.wcmc.org.uk/~dynamic/pavl/ The Protected Areas Virtual Library was developed by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), working in close collaboration with the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (previously the Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas). The WCMC provides information services on the conservation and sustainable use of species and ecosystems, and supports others in the development of their own information management services. The site contains links to national activities of parks agencies and NGOS listed by country, a listing of international protected areas conventions, and a listing of links to international programmes.

Other Links

1. George Wright Society:http://www.portupcom/~gws/gwforum.html The site contains an excellent annotated bibliography of Internet resources on park and protected areas research, including many tourism related sites.
   
   
2. National Parks Service:http://www.nps.gov/ The US National Parks Service site provides information on "links to the past" including information on archeology, civil war, heritage tourism, historic places, landscapes, museums and maritime information.
   
   
3. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration:http://wwwrpts.tamu.edu/aarpa/journal.html The Journal of Park and Recreation Administration is the official publication of the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration. The Journal was established by the Academy to bridge the gap between research and practice for administrators, educators, consultants, and researchers.
   
   
4. Canadian Parks and Recreation Association:www.activeliving.ca/activeliving/cpra.html The Canadian Parks and Recreation Association's website contains information on the activities of the "collective voice for recreation and parks in Canada". The organization is the only national link between Canadian communities in the leisure field.
   
   
5. Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas: http://www.igs.net/cnppa/ The site outlines activities of the CNPPA on marine and mountain protected areas, and World Heritage sites. The CNPPA research focuses on developing guidelines for protected areas planning and management issues (including tourism and recreation) and developing regional action plans.
   
   
6. Parks Canada:http://parkscanada.pch.gc.ca/parks/ This site is useful for information on the Canadian National Parks System.