National Park Service Rangers are among the uniformed employees charged with protecting and preserving areas set aside in the
National Park System by the
United States Congress and/or the
President of the United States. While all employees of the agency contribute to the National Park Service mission of preserving unimpaired the natural and cultural resources set aside by the American people for future generations, the term
Park Ranger is traditionally used to describe all
National Park Service employees who wear the uniform. Broadly speaking, all National Park Service rangers promote
stewardship of the resources in their care - either voluntary stewardship via
resource interpretation, or compliance with
statute or
regulation through
law enforcement. These comprise the two main disciplines of the ranger profession in the National Park Service.