Private Funding of Public Parks: Assessing the Role of Philanthropy

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Date

Jan. 15, 2014

Authors

Margaret A. Walls

Publication

Issue Brief

Reading time

1 minute

Key findings

Many communities are looking to philanthropy to fill gaps in public funding for parks.
Although some communities have achieved success with the philanthropic approach, it has drawbacks: free-riding, uncertainty in funding streams, “crowding-out” of government funds, costs associated with raising money, and inequities in what gets funded.
“Old-fashioned” tax-based systems have been successful in many communities, especially those with independent park systems.
More research is needed to identify effective and low-cost methods of raising voluntary donations for parks, as a complement to sustainable tax-based funding.

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Topics

Authors

Margaret A. Walls

Senior Fellow; Director, Climate Risks and Resilience Program

Margaret Walls is a senior fellow at RFF. Her current research focuses on issues related to resilience and adaptation to extreme events, ecosystem services, and conservation, parks and public lands.

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