Reflections on our first Grand Canyon site visit

In 2024, Upstream received seed funding from the National Park Foundation to lead the creation of a reuse system in Grand Canyon National Park. This multi-stakeholder, 2.5 year project will shift at least 15 dine-in and take-out establishments within the Park’s South Rim to reusable foodware. It will be the largest open-loop system of its kind that we are aware of, and will create a roadmap to scale at National Parks across the country. 

Upstream’s leadership in transforming the foodservice systems at the Grand Canyon National Park’s South Rim represents a vital intersection of sustainability, community impact, and preservation of one of the world’s most iconic natural landmarks. This initiative takes on pressing challenges like waste reduction, resource conservation, and equitable workforce development while creating replicable models for similar endeavors nationwide. 

In December, our team made its first site visit to the Park to meet with stakeholders and better understand the current system and the parameters and constraints under which they will be creating the new reuse system. We are excited to bring you along on the journey as we navigate this systems-level change to infrastructure and operations that will address environmental and social issues within a complex ecosystem.

Our Process

We are partnering with the two concessionaires who serve the Park, Xanterra Travel Collection and Delaware North, as well as Leave No Trace and Grand Canyon Conservancy to help with the educational component. 

Upstream’s job is to design the reuse system, and to do so, we need to dig deep on the analysis and understand the parameters under which this system will be designed. We are gathering data such as how many people dine in versus order to-go—which then informs how many dishes need washing, what kind of dishes/containers need washing, and how and where these dishes get washed. How many dishwashers will be needed? Will we need mobile dishwashing stations? We seek to answer these and many more questions. 

We are also engaging all of the key stakeholders, from operations staff and managers, to local tribes, to the mayor of Tusayan, to Park officials. In order to build the best system, we need to understand perspectives by exploring stakeholders' views, experiences, and expectations related to the Grand Canyon Reuse Project. We also seek to identify needs and priorities, pinpointing key needs, challenges, and opportunities as perceived by stakeholders. We are then using stakeholder feedback to inform decisions, ensure alignment with community priorities, and enhance the impact of our initiatives. We hope to foster trust and engagement by providing a platform for open dialogue and collaboration.

Key takeaways from Site Visit #1

One: water is a  less of a concern than we’d anticipated

The Grand Canyon is located in a desert. We know water is scarce, and more so, the week before we arrived, the aging water pipe serving the South Rim broke. And yet, as we rolled up our sleeves to talk dishwashing with the stakeholders, it turned out water, though a concern, is an issue they are adept at working with. They were already convinced of the argument we were prepared to make: modern-day commercial dishwashers are highly energy- and water-efficient and don’t tend to tax water systems. The concessionaires are utilizing high-efficiency washing machines, which help mitigate their impact on the water supply, and as a result, the NPS has adjusted their water restriction requirements.

Two: “You want to do reuse? Great, go for it! And good luck…” 

Sleeves still rolled, we expected to meet with resistance, incredulity, or a lack of awareness of the issues. But stakeholders, from cafeteria staff to operations managers to Park officials, are all on board. They think switching to reuse is a great idea and are ALL IN on making this work… but are also still skeptical. 

Why? Despite its remote location, we learned that the majority of visitors to the Grand Canyon pass through briefly, just long enough to take a few photos. They are not around long enough to learn a system for returning their containers, and they are likely to take food to-go in their cars and drive away. They are also eager to take souvenirs from the Park, no matter what it is and whether it is actually intended to be a souvenir (salt shakers are popular, so a reusable takeout container may be, as well!). We are excited to take on this unique challenge and craft ways to keep the foodware within the Park and in circulation. 

Three: The Grand Canyon is remote. Very remote.

Everyone working in hospitality also lives at the Park and are provided with housing by their employers. Beyond the tribal communities, there is 100% employment in the Park and in the gateway community of Tusayan because the area is so remote—anyone living there is also working there, and vice versa. 

This poses another unique challenge that concessionaires are used to contending with: it is nearly impossible to contract with outside vendors unless they are able to set up operations, AND housing, on site. So, will a reuse service provider be able to come in to wash the dishes? We’re not sure yet, but we do know that their expertise and insight will be invaluable as we work through dishwashing logistics. 

At the same time, the fact that all employees live in the Park offers a huge opportunity to shift all employee dining to reusables, since it is a closed-loop system.

Four: Done correctly, reuse means opportunity for Native communities

From the start of this process, we have been conducting a best-practice model for stakeholder analysis—and we have engaged marginalized groups who are helping us more deeply understand, for example, that the relationship between the Park and the Native peoples is complex. 

We’ve developed a relationship with the organization Grand Canyon Trust, a conservation group that advocates for the well-being of the 11 tribes of Native peoples in the Grand Canyon region. We learned the following insightful anecdote from them. In 2019, the Grand Canyon National Park’s Centennial, the tribes were asked to contribute ideas on how to celebrate—but to the tribes, the Centennial was not something to celebrate. They had been removed from the land and relegated to a reservation; hiring and work culture practices at the Park have been problematic; and the tribes are restricted in the kinds of access they have to the Park. 

A Native group called the Intertribal Centennial Conversation Group (ICCG) was formed from those conversations and is now serving as an advisor to the Park, with a goal of making the next 100 years better. The ICCG includes Indigenous employees of the Grand Canyon National Park, and their goal is to find ways to ensure respect for the tribes, provide the Park with accountability, and co-manage the Park. 

Upstream is also now engaged with the manager of Change Labs, which is a program of Grand Canyon Trust that works directly with Indigenous entrepreneurs to support them in starting and growing their businesses. The goals of Change Labs include a just transition from unsustainable jobs to work which reduces extraction and increases sustainability.

A coal-powered power plant recently closed in one of the surrounding reservations, which was a significant blow to the local Native peoples because so many livelihoods were tied to those jobs. Workforce development is a big challenge for the tribes, and Upstream is exploring the ways in which we can support this with reuse.

Up next

We will be reconvening in February for our first Design Sprint, and we can’t wait to share the results. Stay tuned!