Badlands
National Park
Conservancy
As an official partner of Badlands National Park, we build relationships and raise support to help preserve its restorative, otherworldly aura for future generations. The Conservancy is more than just a friends group. We're the throughline of stewardship and connection.
Connecting Past, Present, & Future
As leadership, policies, and priorities shift, public lands can feel especially vulnerable. The Badlands National Park Conservancy is committed to being the steady presence that helps hold the Badlands, and all the stories and relationships bound to it, together.
Our Priorities
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Protecting irreplaceable landscapes
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Supporting science and research
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Preserving cultural connections
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Sustaining communities connected to the park
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Ensuring visitors experience the Badlands with wonder and respect
Stewarding Memory and Future
The Badlands can't be reduced to a single narrative. Likewise, its land, wildlife, histories, and cultural connections aren't separate, but intertwined, and carried forward through memory as much as policy.
The Conservancy holds space for both past and present:
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Honoring Ogalala Lakota histories and living cultures
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Preserving scientific truth and discovery
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Supporting communities connected to the park
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Ensuring future generations inherit not just a view, but a sense of belonging
Current Projects
New Visitor Center
Through an extraordinary public-private partnership, funding has been fully secured for a new $25 million Visitor Center. The new center will shape meaningful learning experiences around the park's cultural and natural resources, dark sky viewing, paleontological uniqueness, and tribal cooperation. Construction is slated to begin in fall 2026.
Paleontology
The Badlands' oldest fossils date back 75 million years. As erosion chisels away layers of sediment, groundbreaking new specimens often surface naturally. This abundance of geological evidence—and rich histories yet to be discovered—makes supporting paleontology an ongoing priority for the BNPC.
YOUR PART
IN THE STORY
We shape this place as much as it shapes us.
The Badlands National Park Conservancy works to expand opportunities for visitors to connect with the Badlands and the stories it holds. While it's easy to feel small in a place like this, you make a big difference in stewarding the park's future.
open hike policy
The Badlands' open hike policy means you're free to explore the park on or off trail. This creates opportunities for discovery that are unique within the National Park System, including the possibility of stumbling upon millions-year-old fossils. By following safety protocols, leaving plants and rocks where you found them, and reporting any discoveries to a park ranger, you help keep the Badlands wild and wonderful.
education
The Badlands beckon curiosity and reflection. And the more we learn about the park's rich geological and cultural histories, the better we understand our role in it all. Educational opportunities like virtual field trips, classroom visits, and dark sky viewing can help you connect with life in the Badlands.
membership
By becoming a member or making a one-time donation, you fund our efforts to protect the park's natural beauty while advancing scientific research. Any gift goes a long way toward preserving the delicate ecosystem of the Badlands while deepening our understanding of the mysteries that make it so special.
Donate
Join our efforts to protect and enhance Badlands National Park for current and future generations by making a one-time or recurring donation. You can also mail your support to:
Badlands National Park Conservancy
P.O. Box 495
Rapid City, SD 57709