Advocacy
The Catskill Center is a voice for the Catskill region.
With our annual Catskill Park Day event and the Catskill Park Coalition, of which we are co-chair, we advocate for equitable resources for the Catskills.
Through the Catskill Park Advisory Committee, we collaborate with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as well as the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on comprehensive improvements to the Catskill Park and Forest Preserve.
The Catskill Center is a signatory to the 1997 Watershed Memorandum of Agreement (MoA).
The Catskill Park Advisory Committee
The Catskill Park Advisory Committee (CPAC) was established by the Catskill Center in consultation with DEC. The Committee is a group of local governments and organizations organized by the Catskill Center and the Trail Conference and represents the various communities and user groups of the Catskill Park and the Catskill Watershed. The purpose of the Committee is to provide assistance, advice and guidance to the NYSDEC, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and other land managers in the management of the New York State Forest Preserve, the Catskill Park and the Catskill Watershed.
The Catskill Park coalition
The Catskill Park Coalition is an alliance of like-minded groups committed to working together to broaden public appreciation for the Catskill Park.
The idea of the Coalition is the outgrowth of efforts by the Catskill Center, Catskill Mountainkeeper and Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to seek additional resources for the Park. In the 2013 legislative session the Catskill Center, Catskill Mountain Club, and NY/NJ Trail Conference tested the waters in Albany through an “awareness day” of meetings with key state legislators about the need to increase funding for the Park. A DEC commitment to construct a larger building in the first phase of the Catskill Park Interpretive Center was one of the group’s accomplishments from that day. The success of this first trip to Albany showed that there needed to be a broader, longer-term campaign to try to advocate for increased funding for the Park and for a dedicated Catskill group to speak on the Park’s behalf. The Catskill Park Coalition, is an alliance of like-minded groups working together toward this goal and hosts the annual Catskill Park Day in Albany.
The Coalition is co-chaired by the Catskill Center and Catskill Mountainkeeper.