Case study of
#00093 Leave No Trace education and a 'pack it in, pack it out' ethic
United States
#00104
OngoingNational
Implementer
Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, with NPS, US Forest Service, BLM, US Fish & Wildlife Service
Timeline
Since Jan 1, 1994
Location
United States39.8283, -98.5795
Description
The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, in partnership with US federal land-management agencies (NPS, US Forest Service, BLM, US Fish & Wildlife Service), promotes the Seven Principles of outdoor ethics, including 'pack it in, pack it out,' across national parks, forests, and public lands. The model relies on a shared educational ethic rather than infrastructure, adopted federally since 1994.
Lessons learned
- A shared ethic embedded through formal agency partnerships (NPS, Forest Service, BLM, Fish & Wildlife) can shape behaviour across vast public lands where bins and enforcement are impractical — making the partnership model replicable for land managers in other countries.
- Reach is bounded by how effectively the ethic is taught and internalised; voluntary adoption without enforcement creates a ceiling on compliance.
- The ethic must explicitly cover organic and micro-litter (food scraps, fruit peels) because visitors commonly assume these are harmless — this framing needs to be built into signage and education materials from the start.
Documented Jun 26, 2026