Congratulations Chattanooga! On becoming the first National Park City in North America
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Hello Reader We're over the moon to share the news that Chattanooga in Tennessee, has been recognised as North America’s first ever National Park City following a comprehensive peer review process coordinated by the National Park City Foundation, with support from Salzburg Global Seminar, and World Urban Parks. In a remarkable story, Chattanooga has been transformed over the past decades, from one of the most polluted cities in the United States in the 1970s to an unrivalled outdoor destination and biodiversity hotspot. The impressive campaign for Chattanooga National Park City has built upon this legacy of change, involving widespread support from across the city including dozens of grassroots and community-led organisations, the City of Chattanooga, local businesses, and the endorsement of over 5,000 citizens across the city. Chattanooga has delivered an exciting and exemplary vision for a greener, healthier, wilder and culturally rich National Park City through their highly creative and engaging portfolio submission. Read the full press release about Chattanooga's announcement here, and Alison Barnes our long-standing Trustee, and Chief Executive of the New Forest National Park Authority shares her reflections on why Chattanooga is ready to be a National Park City! We’re extremely grateful for the contributions of the Chattanooga National Park City team, the citizens of Chattanooga, Mayor Tim Kelly and his team, and the voluntary contributions, time, wisdom and experience from our expert peer reviewers, the staff and Trustees of the National Park City Foundation, and the many supporters of the National Park City movement. We are especially thankful to each of the groups and individual contributors in Chattanooga, many of whom we met in person during our peer review and in-person visit. We're excited for Chattanooga to play a full role as part of the National Park City movement. Congratulations from everyone involved with National Park City.
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