LA Conservation Corps’ Post

🌲🌳 Last week, Maryland reached a major conservation milestone — after setting its “30 by 30” goal in 2023, the state announced that, as of February 2024, it had reached this goal six years ahead of schedule. This means that the state has already conserved more than 1.85 million acres out of Maryland’s 6.1 million acres of total land area.   State leaders credit partnership as key to this conservation success, including working closely with local governments, nonprofit land trusts, conservation organizations, federal agencies, and landowners. Maryland is now looking towards its next milestone — conserving 40% of land by 2040.    🔗 Learn more about Maryland’s conservation progress via the Maryland Protected Land Dashboard: https://lnkd.in/e2vxTDtc   

#FieldNotes: After destroying more than 2,500 homes and businesses, the largest recorded wildfire in Oregon state history left multiple communities along Highway 99 looking to recover. Known as the Bear Creek Greenway, the region came together as part of a unique area action plan with unified goals. With input directly from community advisory committees, the revisioning process positioned the corridor to come back even stronger than before the Almeda Fire. "It’s unusual to do long-range planning for multiple jurisdictions…Following the Almeda Fire, the unique goals of each community impacted were addressed with project advisory committees to create a unified corridor revisioning." Take a closer look at this planning effort with David Sacamano, ASLA to see how community engagement provided the basis for a comprehensive plan designed to redevelop these areas with a focus on smart growth principles. Read more about the Bear Creek Greenway project at otak.com: https://lnkd.in/gqerNcbp Client: Oregon Department of Transportation / Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development #comprehensiveplanning #communityengagement

Cheers to Suncoast Waterkeeper for launching its Mangrove Ranger program to safeguard Florida's precious mangroves. Mangroves aren't just trees—they're lifelines for our coastlines, marine biodiversity, and our planet's health. They are critical nurseries for juvenile reef fish like tarpon and redfish, and for invertebrates like shrimp and clams. As sea levels rise and development increases, their protection is more crucial than ever. The Mangrove Ranger program empowers volunteers to monitor mangrove health and report violations, providing vital data for advocacy efforts. We all need to protect our mangroves for current and future generations! Read more about the program below. #mangroves, #ClimateAction, #water, #cleanwater --

This week on The Boomerang. My review of Rebecca Renner's stellar non-fiction debut, GATOR COUNTRY. "Gator Country takes seriously what Floridians already know, and few people outside the state understand, that living in Florida is living on the edge–of the swamp, of the North American continent, of life. " #bookrecommendation #bookreview #florida #nonfiction https://lnkd.in/dvbXXa9q

🐦 Today, on World Sparrow Day, let's reflect on the plight of these little creatures. As their habitats disappear, sparrows are left with no place to call home. It's time to take action to preserve their habitats and ensure their survival. Let's pledge to create spaces where sparrows can thrive once again. #WorldSparrowDay #SaveOurSparrows #HabitatPreservation 🌿🏡

Another step towards a more equitable outdoors! Really proud of the work my team and ally organizations have done to advance this legislation forward. Learn more & get involved below.

BREAKING: Two new fire ant nests have been discovered in Meringandan West, north of Toowoomba. 🚨 We're running out of time to protect our native wildlife and communities from these tiny killers. If we're going to get eradication back on track, the state and federal governments must implement the recommendations from the recent senate inquiry into fire ants. We need ✅ more community outreach, education and advertising, ✅ increased fire ant checks and compliance and ✅ additional funding and resources.

Wildfires in Colorado. Every summer, more acres burned, more structures lost, more rebuilding that has to happen. Another this year, with the Alexander Mountain Fire burning 9,668 acres near Loveland. The 20 largest fires in Colorado's history have burned close to 1.5 million acres. The devastating loss of natural beauty only to then witness the ability for forests to sprout anew. And obviously, the loss of homes and structures alongside these fires. The Marshall Fire in 2021 is the largest fire for home and structure loss in the state's history, with 1,084 homes burning to the ground. Did you know that Colorado State University and the Warner College of Natural Resources have an amazing resource to help people rebuild the natural beauty around them? The Restoring Colorado's Forests Fund provides tree seedlings that will be planted on lands most severely impacted by wildfires and other disasters. The Colorado State Forest Service's nursery is about to start a $15 million expansion and renovation, allowing for space for over 2 million seedlings each year. Learn more at these resources: - https://lnkd.in/d5Ts2iZK - https://lnkd.in/d9phDh_J #wildfire #nature #naturalresources #warnercollege #forests #coloradostateuniversity #colorado

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Today marks the 34th anniversary of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA). Since 1989, NAWCA has fueled waterfowl conservation across North America, uniting federal, state, and local governments and nonprofit organizations like DU with community groups in strategic partnership for the conservation of wetlands. How does it work? NAWCA provides challenge grants for wetlands conservation projects in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Every dollar of federal money allotted to NAWCA must be matched by a dollar or more from non-federal sources like DU or state fish and wildlife agencies. Because this program is so effective, funds are often doubled or tripled at the local level. In Washington, D.C., the #DucksUnlimited Government Affairs staff works with Congress in support of annual funding and the reauthorization of NAWCA to keep building on the Act's waterfowl conservation success. To date, NAWCA has helped fund more than 3,300 projects on almost 32 million acres in all 50 states, areas of Canada, and areas of Mexico. More than 6,800 partners, including private landowners, industry, and state governments, have worked together to conserve wildlife habitat through NAWCA grants. #DuckPolicy To find out more about #NAWCA and its success in your state, visit here: https://lnkd.in/ejFizDF2

I want to shout out to Clay Alexander Robison, who passed away at 59 on 7 Jan 1966. He served for many years as the Story County Conservation Board Secretary and was a National Director of the Izaak Walton League of America (national office). Prior to his passing, he donated land to form a wildlife refuge. We need more people like him in our world. Today, I enjoyed hiking on that land. I was inspired to learn that the county is applying innovative conservation efforts such as removing invasive plants like honeysuckle and multi-flora rose and using goats to graze the underbrush in order to restore the area to the native vegetation that likely existed prior to the settlement of the State. Opportunities to provide service and do lasting good for our communities exist all around us. What better way to instill character, values, and principles and build community than to organize and serve on a conservation project? Numerous publications document the decline of social consciousness and the erosion of the core values necessary for better business and effective (good) government. Articles describe increasing social awkwardness and the lack of fundamental leadership. A mechanism to reverse that trend is staring us in the face. Let's take advantage of it! #conservation #leadershipdevelopment #values #corevalues #betterbusiness #goodgovernance #givingback