The Emerald Necklace is over 1,000 acres of greenspace, waterways, parkways and structures in six unique public parks located in Boston and Brookline: Franklin Park, Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Park, Olmsted Park, The Riverway and Back Bay Fens. Designed as an integrated park system (1878-1896) by the father of American landscape architecture, Frederick Law Olmsted Sr., the Emerald Necklace is considered (along with Central Park in New York), an inspired masterpiece of American urban park planning, embodying the philanthropic vision that parks should be places where all citizens can experience the restorative mental and spiritual influences of nature. After a century, however, the living Necklace has aged and deteriorated with neglect as a result of declining parks budgets; it now needs major restoration and specialized maintenance to fulfill its mature beauty. Work has begun to restore, maintain and promote this national treasure, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, through a public-private partnership between the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and its public sector partners: Boston, Brookline and the Commonwealth. The Conservancy was founded in 1998 to bring together area residents, community, business and institutional leaders, environmental advocates, and national and local government officials to address the park system's short and long-term needs. Already it has played a crucial catalytic and leadership role. Please join this effort.