At Katmai National Park & Preserve in Alaska, salmon sustain one of the richest coastal ecosystems on Earth. At Brooks Falls, they must run a gauntlet of hungry bears, wolves, birds, and other predators before spawning further inland. Every summer, sockeye salmon return from the ocean, where they have spent two or three years, and travel up rivers, lakes, and streams to return to the headwater gravel beds of their birth to deposit their young before dying.

Beginning in 1819, the U.S. implemented forced assimilation policies that established federal Indian boarding schools. The schools attempted to wipe out Native identity, language and culture by forcibly removing children from their families and communities. Many of the children endured physical and emotional abuse and, in some cases, died. The loss of culture and language due to this forced separation and abuse has been devastating for generations.

For the past 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has been a vital safety net for protecting fish, wildlife and plants. The law has been instrumental in preventing the extinction of numerous imperiled species and safeguarding the environments in which they thrive. From the bald eagle to the island fox, we are thankful for the species this law has helped recover and save. While we have made significant progress in safeguarding species on the verge of extinction, many face challenges to recovery, including habitat loss and climate change.

Some of the first park rangers in America weren’t rangers at all. They were Buffalo Soldiers — African Americans who served in the U.S. Army after the Civil War. Buffalo Soldiers Day celebrates the legacy of these first-of-a-kind, trailblazing rangers.

Photo at @YellowstoneNPS From 1899 to 1904, Buffalo Soldiers were among the first people to work in @YosemiteNPS, @YellowstoneNPS and @SequoiaKingsNPS — more than 10 years before the creation of the National Park Service.