Land Trust Alliance

Exciting news! The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar has announced more than $1.26 million in grants for four land trusts to support five projects that help safeguard local forests. "We want to thank Department of Environmental Conservation and the state of New York for partnering with the Alliance to offer funding to land trusts through the FCELT grant program," said Jamie Brown, New York senior program manager for the Land Trust Alliance. "Our forest lands play critical roles in terms of providing jobs, wildlife habitat and helping to mitigate climate change. New York’s nearly 95 land trusts are working to protect these important lands as well as other open space that is important to all New Yorkers.”

Encouraging beavers in watersheds can lead to numerous conservation benefits including improving water quality, creating wetland habitats for other species and increasing floodwater storage capacity to help mitigate the effects of climate change. Beavers are natural engineers, and their activities can contribute significantly to ecosystem health. Over four 75-minute online sessions, national experts will cover various methods and considerations for incorporating beavers into land trusts’ restoration activities and share real world land trust examples to bring these concepts to life. Our sessions will be 11:00 am-12:15 pm Eastern/ 10:00-11:15 am Central on Tuesday, Nov., 12; Thursday, Nov. 14; Tuesday, Nov. 19; and Thursday, Nov. 21. https://lnkd.in/gwGf-Swz

Eight years ago, we shared that that land is the answer to the critical challenges of our times — things like climate impacts, food insecurity, water pollution, physical and mental health crises, the loss of culture and traditional ways of life. Today, we offer a friendly amendment to that vision: People are also the answer. We can’t unleash the power of the land to address the challenges of today—much less the challenges still to come—without investing in, engaging with, supporting and mobilizing the people who love that land. It’s exciting that an anonymous funder agrees that people are the answer, and they would like to see more support for the Alliance’s important work building the leaders and organizations that protect the special places people need and love. Every new or increased donation over $500 will be matched dollar for dollar up to $250,000 from now until the end of December. This is an historic gift and unprecedented opportunity for the Alliance, and we hope you’ll play a role in us meeting this challenge, together. Make a donation today at https://lnkd.in/gUQ2RQJa

We are thrilled to join the Open Space Institute in announcing that attorney and conservationist Mavis Gragg has been presented with the distinguished 2024 Kingsbury Browne Conservation Leadership Award. Mavis is co-founder of HeirShares, an organization that delivers comprehensive educational content, data, and technology to empower heirs' property landowners and attorneys dealing with heirs’ property issues. She is also a founding member of the Conservationists of Color, an affinity group creating space for practitioners of color within the land conservation movement to connect. Mavis is also a member of our Conservation Defense Advisory Council and served on its Common Ground Advisory Council, which laid the groundwork for the Alliance’s community-centered conservation program. The Kingsbury Browne Award is presented annually at Rally: The National Land Conservation Conference and honors those who have enriched the conservation community through their outstanding leadership, innovation, and creativity in land conservation. Named for Kingsbury Browne, the conservationist who inspired the Alliance’s founding in 1982, the award ranks among the organization’s highest honors. Gragg will serve as the Kingsbury Browne distinguished practitioner for the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in Cambridge, Mass., for 2024-2025. Congratulations, Mavis!

Investing in people and land trusts is what we do. Congrats on your position, Tessa!

Check out this podcast "Reclaiming Black-Owned Land," featuring our own 2024 Kingsbury Browne Award winner, Mavis Gragg!

Congratulations to The Land Conservancy of New Jersey for earning the 2024 Land Trust Excellence Award at Rally this year! 🥳🥳🥳 The Land Conservancy of New Jersey is recognized for its work in several areas, including a land-back project with the Indigenous people of the Ramapo Mountains. The project was a multi-year effort involving parties in multiple states to purchase the Ramapo Munsee Lenape Nation’s most sacred site, help the tribe establish a land trust and then donate the land to the tribe in perpetuity — an act of restorative justice, of equity and of empowerment of marginalized communities. The Conservancy completed its 500th land acquisition project in 2023, helping landowners to protect and conserve their land in perpetuity — work that in the last ten years alone has provided community landowners with more than $232 million thanks to projects completed with its assistance. The land trust is building future environmental leaders through education. Its scholarship program will award $70,000 in college scholarships in 2025, and its Outdoor Ambassador Program provides city children with opportunities to explore and learn about the organization’s natural area preserves. The land trust is also an active land steward and community supporter through its push for equitable access to healthy food for all, land and stream restoration, and more.

Our friends at Bitter Root Land Trust created an incredible video with Carhartt and Luke Grimes to paint a picture of how a small community makes conservation possible, and the hardworking families that steward the land. We are honored to see our "Find a Land Trust" tool featured on the same page. Check out the video and discover a land trust serving your community at the link below!

Last week, some of our favorite Alliance conservationists flocked to the Global Congress on International Land Conservation held by the International Land Conservation Network. The 2024 ILCN Global Congress "brought together experts and practitioners to build the capacity and coherence of civic (NGO and non-profit) and private sector conservation organizations to complement and partner effectively with public sector, academic, Indigenous and other essential sectors engaged in land conservation on six continents." Alliance interim president and CEO Jennifer Miller Herzog presented on “Network Perspectives," where the leaders of civic land conservation organizations from around the world offered reflections on the growth of the private and civic land conservation movement and offered reflections on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Renee Kivikko, Alliance vice president of education, was both a member of the ILCN Steering Committee and moderator of a panel, “Do you trust me? Building Partnerships Across Difference." Alliance conservation defense fund and education manager Ailla Wasstrom-Evans also presented, sharing insight on “The Role of Permanence in Conservation Agreements." The meeting of conservationists from around the globe was inspiring, but a truly moving moment in conservation occurred the day before the conference, when 40,000 snow geese arrived at Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area on their migratory path. "We had the pleasure to see them and further connect our conservation hearts to our work," said Wasstrom-Evans.

Deadline is this Friday!