Apple Celebrating National Parks in August With Donations, Apple Watch Challenge, Apple Music Collections and More

Monday August 19, 2019 10:36 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple today announced that it is celebrating America's national parks in August ahead of the 103rd anniversary of the US National Park Service, introducing new parks-related content to encourage park attendance.

applenationalparks

"The beauty in our parks is obvious to all observers but their most profound contribution is to our spirit," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "We are proud to support them."

As announced over the weekend, from August 17 to August 25, Apple is making a $10 donation to the National Park Foundation for each purchase made with Apple Pay at an Apple Store, Apple.com, or the ‌Apple Store‌ app in the United States.

Apple says that its donations will help support programs across the United States designed to help connect young people who wouldn't otherwise have the means with "transformative park experiences" ranging from classroom field trips to immersive multi-day experiences and multi-week service corps for young adults.

During August, Apple is also encouraging people to explore their national parks through several special collections coming to Apple's services.

In the Apple TV app, there's a collection of park-related content such as "Free Solo," and the Smithsonian's "National Parks Exploration Series," while Apple Music has a new "Nature Awaits" playlist inspired by the "extraordinary beauty of the country's parks."

Apple Podcasts will feature a collection of shows focused on national parks, and Apple Books will feature an "Our National Parks" themed collection guiding readers through notable parks in the United States. The App Store will also highlight essential apps to help users plan for their next national park visit.

Apple on August 25 will challenge Apple Watch owners to participate in a walk, run, hike, or wheelchair workout of at least three miles to earn an activity award and animated stickers inspired by Grand Canyon National Park's 100th anniversary.

Top Rated Comments

macduke

54 months ago

I visited Arches National Park this summer to do some hiking and photography. I went there once as a kid and hadn't been back in 20 years. I'm glad to see that it has been preserved well so that my own children were able to witness the beauty. This is why we fund our National Parks system.

This is one of my favorite places in the world, climbed up inside Double Arch late in the evening. It was so peaceful.

Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)

The Barron

Great image - Thanks for the share.

Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

coolfactor

I think this is one of many facets of Apple that people tend to overlook when comparing to the competition. Does Google, Amazon and Samsung directly participate in connecting people with our world in the same way that Apple does? Genuine question. Apple is the only company that I regularly see demonstrating their efforts to better the environment. They have the largest solar installation in the US, and include an environmental report in every product release. I never see this from the other guys.

Defthand

If you have the choice of going to a national park or to Disneyland, go to a park. Nothing Disney fabricates can equal the majesty and awe of these spaces. My first park was the Grand Canyon. I assumed I would take a few pics and be back on the road in half an hour. Instead, I stared at that canyon until sundown with everyone else.

Chillenout

The Grand Canyon is beautiful but I don’t think anything can beat the majesty of Yosemite.

My breath is always taken away coming out of the tunnel.

Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)