Advancement Initiatives
David Young
Building Stronger Land Trusts Through Community Conservation
A CLCC program commenced in October 2014, the Connecticut Land Trust Advancement Initiative is an organizational advancement program for land trusts working together as part of one of Connecticut's Regional Conservation Partnership or otherwise seeking opportunities for regional collaboration.
Completed Advancement Initiatives
The 2022 Initiatives
- Northwest CT Land Trust Advancement Initiative
CLCC, with support from the Connecticut Community Foundation, offered a new round of roundtable discussions among land trust peers, community groups, and municipal partners in Northwest CT, centered around expanding our perspective on what conservation means to us and the community at large. This initiative engaged conservationists and others interested in land use with introducing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into their conservation work, using these topics as a lens to brainstorm ways to work locally and in partnership with non-conservation community organizations for a shared, equitable purpose.
Learn More » - Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative CLCC, with support from the Connecticut Community Foundation, offered a new round of roundtable discussions among land trust peers, community groups, and municipal partners in Northwest CT, centered around expanding our perspective on what conservation means to us and the community at large. Facilitated by equity trainers, Ashley Stewart and David Sutherland, this initiative engaged conservationists and others interested in land use with introducing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into their conservation work, and use these topics as a lens to brainstorm ways to work locally and in partnership with non-conservation community organizations for a shared, equitable purpose.
- New London County Advancement Initiative Building on our work in 2021, CLCC worked with land trusts in the region to host a series of dialogue sessions with land trust staff and board members on examining our conservation work through an equity lens. In the second half of this program, CLCC hosted a series of community conversations – linking our land trusts in the region to community-based organizations and municipalities in New London County to one another. These conversations stimulated discussion around equitable land access, partnerships, and a shared vision for the region. We are thankful to the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut for their ongoing support of these efforts.
Learn More »
The 2021 Initiatives
- Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative With support from the Connecticut Community Foundation, CLCC helped address the lack of diversity within the land conservation sector with land trusts in the greater Waterbury/Litchfield Hills region. This Initiative, similar to those in the Northeast and New London County, sought to refocus land trusts on their organizational culture and provide opportunities to meet diverse audiences for the shared mission of building healthier and more sustainable communities.
Learn More » - Northeast Connecticut Advancement Initiative Our work focused on improving communications and community engagement, working with the land trusts to refocus their organizational culture and develop relationships with diverse audiences. In tandem, layers to the regional mapper developed as part of this Initiative were refined to address equity.
Learn More » - New London County Advancement Initiative Our work focused on improving communications and community engagement, beginning with seeking out and building relationships with community organizations in New London County to gain an understanding of their land use and programming needs, and how land trusts can serve their communities to meet these needs. In tandem, layers to the regional mapper developed as part of this Initiative were refined to address equity.
Learn More »
The 2020 Initiatives
- Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative As a continuation from 2019, we worked to further establish relationships and implement collaborative projects encompassing education/outreach and stewardship goals among 8 conservation organizations within the Pomperaug River watershed. This project has been made possible, thanks to funding from the Connecticut Community Foundation.
- Northeast Connecticut Advancement Initiative With funding from the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut and in partnership with The Last Green Valley, this programming focused on improving communications and community engagement and developing a regional conservation strategy with the development of a regional mapper. This work wrapped up in 2021 with a focus on refining outreach and mapping through a diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice lens.
- New London County Advancement Initiative Building on the Advancement Initiative established in 2017 and with funding from the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut, we developed the GIS mapping component to develop a regional mapper, which informed conservation planning in tandem with the mapper developed in Northeast Connecticut. This work wrapped up in 2021 with a focus on refining outreach and mapping through a diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice lens.
The 2019 Initiatives
- Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative With funding from the Connecticut Community Foundation, and as part of our Advancement Initiative Advanced Collaboration and Merger Assistance Program we worked with 8 conservation organizations to explore opportunities for a durable collaborative project and/or relationship around mutual goals to protect land and water resources in a watershed region.
- Southwest Connecticut We worked with eight organizations/communities to explore the creation of a new regional land trust.
The 2018 Initiatives
- Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative With funding from the Connecticut Community Foundation, the overarching goal of the 2018 Initiative was to build upon the progress made in fostering a collaborative effort among the three participating land trusts from the 2017 Initiative (Bethlehem, Litchfield and Watertown), with guidance and expertise from Weantinoge Heritage Land Trust and the Litchfield Hills Greenprint Collaborative, while also expanded the project geographically for greater regional impact. To that end, after examining the common longer-term priorities identified through the 2017 Initiative, we decided to focus the project on strategic conservation planning and invited the Morris Land Trust to participate. Together, through a series of individual and group mapping exercises, the project participants identified two potential regional partnership/collaborations focused on land acquisition and watershed protection.
- Northeast Connecticut Land Trust Advancement Initiative (2018-2020) With funding from the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut—Janvrin Fund, this three-year initiative, offered in partnership with The Last Green Valley, invested in a program focused on: (1) community engagement and communications to raise visibility of land trust work in Northeast Connecticut; (2) strategic conservation planning to assist land trusts in identifying, prioritizing, and conserving critical lands; and (3) establishing the framework for a larger, watershed-wide regional conservation strategy that will allow land trusts to cooperatively seek landscape-scale funding for shared priorities.
- South Central Connecticut We worked with a coalition of land trusts, communities, and other partners to support the development of the South Central Regional Land Conservation Alliance, a new regional conservation partnership.
The 2017 Initiatives
- New London County Land Trust Advancement Initiative With funding from the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut (CFECT), this three-year project built upon our 2016 New London County Land Trust Advancement Initiative by going deeper into addressing the participating land trusts' respective stewardship programs and overall organizational needs. We added a GIS mapping component and a series of facilitated group meetings to develop the foundation for sustainable, regional strategic conservation planning and project implementation. See the press release for this initiative here. This project wrapped up in 2019.
- Waterbury Region Land Trust Advancement Initiative With funding from the Connecticut Community Foundation, this one-year initiative allowed three land trusts to explore opportunities for stronger collaborative relationships with regional conservation partners, Weantinoge Heritage Land Trust and the Litchfield Hills Greenprint Collaborative, and arrived together at a decision that best supports the long-term goals of the individual land trusts, with an enhanced conservation impact in the region.
The 2016 Initiative
- New London County Land Trust Advancement Initiative April- December 2016, funded by the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut Letz Environmental Grant Program, was a one-year project which sought to strengthen land trusts operating within New London County by providing technical assistance, training and other services focused on building their respective programs to provide long-term land stewardship and conservation defense. By integrating a regional focus to the project, we helped to increase the individual land trust's capacity to deliver greater conservation impact within their respective communities, while also fostering a stronger and more visible collective ability of the land trusts to conserve and protect natural resources in the New London County region. Participating land trusts: Avalonia Land Conservancy, Colchester Land Trust, East Lyme Land Trust, Groton Open Space Association, Old Lyme Land Trust, and Wyndham Land Trust.
Access information and handouts for the Land Trust Advancement Initiative: New London County »
The 2014-16 Pilot Initiative
- Lower Connecticut River Valley An 18 month program—CLCC worked with the Land Trust Alliance and the Lower Connecticut River Valley Council of Governments (River COG) to provide 15 land trusts within the Lower CT River and Coastal Region Land Trust Exchange (LTE) (a regional conservation partnership coordinated by RiverCOG Environmental Planner Margot Burns) with technical assistance to collaborate on 3 projects focused on communications & community engagement, long-term stewardship, and a feasibility study on shared services. Project consultants were: Judy Anderson, Community Consultants, and Tom Curren (Communications); Shane Hetzler, Back Forty Forestry, LLC, and Becca Washburn, the Land Trust Alliance (Stewardship); and Henrietta Jordan, Trailmarker Consultants (Shared Services Study). This was the first project of its kind in the country funded by the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service for the purpose of building land trust capacity. Participating land trusts: Avalonia Land Conservancy, Chester Land Trust, Clinton Land Conservation Trust, Colchester Land Trust, Deep River Land Trust, East Haddam Land Trust, Essex Land Trust, Haddam Land Trust, Lyme Land Conservation Trust, Old Lyme Land Trust, Lower Connecticut River Land Trust, Middlesex Land Trust, Old Saybrook Land Trust, Salem Land Trust, Westbrook Land Trust. (All but Avalonia Land Conservancy and Colchester Land Trust are members of the LTE.)
