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This annual report highlights our efforts during fiscal year 1999-2000. It reveals why we believe so firmly that our services, products, and consultations are important in the daily lives of millions of people. Like other organizations, we find it challenging to remain focused on the important things in life amid the rush of daily demands. Quite simply, we have been able to advance our mission because of the extraordinary collaboration among our leadership, members, and staff who have combined to influence all of our efforts. The contributions of our members are truly remarkable because their efforts come in addition to their highly demanding work in virtually every park and recreation system and setting in the United States, and often abroad.

Our public policy initiatives have focused principally on legislation to create a sufficient, predictable source of funds to invest in public park and recreation resources. National advocacy efforts -- from grassroots organization and outreach to direct consultation with legislators and other policymakers -- have emphasized our perspective that park and recreation resources and services are vital to our national health and well-being. Our messages to Congress and the executive branch have focused on the values of environmental stewardship and the imperative for a diversity of recreation services. Our direct advocacy and partnerships with innumerable groups and public agencies have brought us tantalizingly close to passage of the proposed Conservation and Reinvestment Act. Concurrently, we continue to advocate recreation access for all, including high-quality, secure recreation during non-school periods; disease prevention and health promotion; and recreation experiences to support military combat readiness.

We continue to believe that our involvement with idea sharing, networking, and communication is unending. The public, the media, and those who set policy, manage resources, and deliver services are in constant need of information. To this end, we have partnered with Active. coin, a proven Internet player, to produce what will become a principal information source for public parks and recreation. While still in its formative stages, ActiveParks.org (www.activeparks.org) promises to become an important means to provide information on national, state, and local resources, services, and products.

Recreation, quality time, livable communities, stewardship : these terms resonate, because for increasing numbers of us, personal time for recreation continues to decline while the pace of life quickens and performance expectations rise. Our physical environment is similarly stressed by our unrelenting reliance on fossil fuels; the dispersion of toxic materials into waters, soils, and air; and ill-placed development. The National Recreation and Park Association -- through advocacy, education, research, and standard-setting -- will continue to foster active lifestyles, social well-being, and environmental stewardship. We are proud of the energy and commitment that has enabled us to serve this fiscal year. We look forward to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.