A thorough understanding of those resources is essential to their long-term preservation. Such understanding requires a sound scientific basis.
National parks are also unique laboratories for scientific research.
The NPS has a twofold scientific responsibility - to use the best available science in park management and to encourage research in parks that benefits society as a whole. The Program Sabbaticals taken in National Park System units provide the NPS with scientific and scholarly expertise. Such expertise encompasses many disciplines important to managing park resources and providing services to park visitors. Sabbaticals in parks also increase the interaction of national parks with the scientific community, and complement the research of the USGS Biological Resources Division, NPS regional science support programs, Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units, and other research occurring in NPS units. Sabbaticals in parks can play an important role in promoting the use of national parks for the advancement of science and human knowledge.