The YCC has introduced young Americans to conservation opportunities in public lands since the program was created in 1970.

In the late seventies and early eighties the program included a grant-in-aid component that funded state and local YCC projects nationwide.

Youth Conservation Corps members work in public lands restoring, rehabilitating, and repairing the natural, cultural, and historical resources protected as federally preserved places.

Some examples of work completed each season by Youth Conservation Corps are: Participants are paid the established federal minimum wage.

These are some of the aspects they focus on: Recruitment for the YCC within the National Park Service is done at individual sites participating in the program.