Conservation policy has an encouraging new bright spot: the America the Beautiful Act. This legislation would renew the Legacy Restoration Fund, a proven program that supports the repair and restoration of parks, forests, and public lands across the country.
This bill proposes $2 billion in annual funding over the next eight years to help address long-standing maintenance needs and strengthen the resilience of outdoor spaces. Since its launch in 2020, the Legacy Restoration Fund has supported more than 1,500 projects nationwide—improving trails, safeguarding water resources, restoring wildlife habitat, and ensuring that outdoor infrastructure remains safe and sustainable.
With the program now expired, reauthorizing it through the America the Beautiful Act is essential to continuing this progress. The Appalachian Mountain Club was proud to help champion the fund’s creation and remains committed to supporting its renewal.
Fact Sheets and Other Resources
To learn more, you can read the following information:
Write Postcard Messages to Your Representatives
To help reauthorize the America the Beautiful Act, all AMC members are welcome to send postcards to their local representatives. To encourage passage that will protect the outdoors, or create opposition to harmful legislation and environmental rules changes, the AMC recommends the following:
- Keep them short and focused
Postcards have limited space—two to four sentences is perfect. Stick to one to two clear asks, supporting America the Beautiful Act and reauthorizing the Legacy Restoration Fund.
- Start with your connection
A quick personal note makes your message stand out. Think about why public lands matter to your everyday life, such as:
- “As a hiker…”
- “As a parent…”
- Say why it matters to you or your community
Share a quick impact:
- Public lands you explore
- Outdoor activities you love
- Family experiences that matter to you
- Environmental protection that matters for your future
- Keep the tone respectful and positive, yet don’t overthink it.
Messages are most effective when they’re courteous and solutions focused. You don’t need perfect wording—authenticity matters more than polish.
- Include your name and hometown
This shows you’re a real constituent and makes your message more impactful.
Sample Messages
“As a hiker, I’ve seen how much maintenance matters. The Legacy Restoration Fund improves the trails I love. I hope you’ll support the America the Beautiful Act to keep them safe and accessible.”
“I want my kids to enjoy safe, healthy outdoor spaces. The Legacy Restoration Fund helps care for parks and trails. Please support the America the Beautiful Act for future generations.”
“Protecting natural resources takes ongoing investment. The Legacy Restoration Fund restores habitats and strengthens public lands. I urge you to continue this progress through the America the Beautiful Act.”
“Investing in resilient public lands is part of addressing climate impacts we’re already seeing. The Legacy Restoration Fund helps strengthen ecosystems and infrastructure. Please support the America the Beautiful Act.”
Hold a Postcard Writing Event
To encourage additional people to support this vital legislation, you can host a postcard writing event. This enables you to get people to meet others who similarly care about preserving our forests, parks, waterways, and wildlife.
Steps to Take
- Reach out to Conservation Chair Katie Blair, conservation@amcboston.org, and let her know that you want to lead a postcard writing event. She’ll set you up with everything you need, including training, fact sheets about key legislation, resources to learn more, sample postcard messaging, and writing tips.
- Build some experience in advance by creating some sample postcards before the event.
- Select a location where people can both socialize and use their creative skills to make postcards that stand out when received by their legislators (e.g., large dining room at home, restaurant banquet room, pop-up tent at an environmental event, trailhead, boat launch, or park).
- Provide as many tools as possible to make writing the cards easy, such as postcards from the Boston Chapter, pens (lots of colors makes it extra fun!), stamps (it’s totally reasonable to ask people to contribute to the cost of the stamps), representatives’ addresses, and talking points.
- Snacks and drinks really help. It needn’t be fancy, but postcard writing can be hard work. A tray of cookies or candy, and water/juice/soda help make it feel more social. Wine or beer is also acceptable, but keep it reasonable. (If you meet at a restaurant, ask people to buy something to support the business.)
- At the end of the event, collect all postcards, add stamps, and mail them as soon as possible.
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