Connecticut Land Conservation Conference
March 22, 2025
Frank Center for Public Affairs,
238 Church Street, Wesleyan University, Middletown
Workshops
A.7 It’s a Marathon: Engaging Community in Long-Term Projects
The saying “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon” applies to nothing better than big, messy, long-term land conservation projects that may take decades to come to fruition. How do you engage your community around such an unruly project–and keep them engaged? Advocates from just such projects statewide will come together in this fishbowl-style discussion to share their successes and challenges. Panelists will share the many creative ways in which they’ve engaged supporters, how they’ve weathered “quiet” periods when there isn’t much news to energize their communities, and what they’re struggling with today. Following the panelists’ conversation, we’ll open the floor for a group discussion of the community engagement problems participants are facing and strategies for addressing them. Target audience: land trust leaders, organizers, communicators. Participants can expect to leave with some concrete ideas and strategies they can adapt to their own community outreach and engagement.
Presenter(s)
Kathy Czepiel (Facilitator), Land Protection Manager, Save the Sound
Jhoni Ada, Organizer, Sierra Club – CT Chapter
Cally Guasti, CT Program Manager, Trust for Public Land
Elizabeth Hayes, Steering Committee Member, Six Lakes Park Coalition
Suzanne Thompson, Coalition Coordinator, Save Oswegatchie Hills Coalition
Resources and Handouts

“CLCC’s annual conference is like Woodstock for Connecticut’s land conservation community. It’s an opportunity to foster connections, get inspired, and celebrate our collective accomplishments”
- Pete Govert, Executive Director, East Haddam Land Trust
Previous Conferences
Interested in reading about past conferences? Check out past years' conference wrap-ups…