The current exhibits are timeworn and feature outdated information — the new exhibits are planned as stations and displays to impart information about the surrounding mountains, the role of conservation in maintaining their pristine beauty, Cherokee history and culture, biodiversity in the high elevations and the impact of invasive pests such as the balsam wooly adelgid. The project is expected to cost $38,000. 

The list of planned projects includes many other initiatives further north on the parkway as well as several projects that will affect the Parkway’s entire length. 

The annually updated Outdoor Activity Guide features trail maps, safety information, bear encounter guidance and more. Donor support of $11,500 will print 100,000 copies of the 24-page newspaper, to be available for free at all Parkway visitor centers. 

Citizen scientists will receive the tools they need to collect native wildflower seeds and survey populations of bees, butterflies and other pollinators that help keep the ecosystem healthy through $8,200 for the Bee Kind to the Parkway program. The seeds will be used to re-establish wildflower display areas originally designed in the Parkway landscape, bolstering pollinator habitats. 

Law enforcement equipment to increase the team’s capacity to protect plants and animals from poachers will multiply the force’s effectiveness. The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina is offering a grant for this program in addition to the $2,300 the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation aims to raise. 

This summer, volunteers will place motion-sensitive cameras in remote areas of the Parkway to find out what types of animals have passed by. Raising $5,500 will provide additional cameras so that park biologists can cover more territory in a multiyear study of animal populations and their locations on Parkway land. 

Contribute to the fundraising effort at www.brpfoundation.org/donate.