Partners for Open Space and the Maryland Environmental Trust are holding a land preservation summit in early May to discuss the future land preservation efforts and direction. Interested county elected officials and professional staff are invited to attend.
Key Information
Title: “Keeping Conservation and Land Trusts Vital for the Next Century in Maryland”
Date & Time: Friday, May 6, 2016 (9:00 AM – 2:30 PM)
Location: Blue Heron Center at Quiet Waters Park (600 Quiet Waters Park, Annapolis, MD 21403)
Cost: $20 if registered by April 8, $30 if registered by noon on April 30, $40 for walk-on (space permitting)
Summit Description
From the summit’s flyer:
Land preservation organizations and their partners must evolve to meet the changing attitudes, opinions, and needs of the public. At the same time, a growing number of new, and innovative community non-profits are implementing strategies to create healthy, resilient communities and economies. These groups are focused issues such as healthy people, sustainable agriculture, better food systems, and housing.
This summit seeks to identify ways these groups and traditional land preservation groups might coalesce a broader, collective community voice for increasing support and capacity to accomplish our work in mutually supporting ways. Through meaningful dialogue, we seek to opportunities to increase funding and support for land and community conservation efforts
Over the past fifty years in Maryland, public agencies, land conservation NGO’s, and their partners have worked together to address the most pressing needs of the day by acquiring and protecting important resource lands from conversion to more intensive development. This work has been done by using creative approaches to land acquisition, shaping land protection policies, and increasing public funding for our work.
While the numbers of organizations and individuals engaged in conservation in Maryland has grown, the preservation landscape is facing profound changes that challenge our collective work and individual missions. Our future success is tied intimately with land conservation linked to the health of our farms, cities, water ways, forests, and cultural places
To remain relevant and thrive we must adapt. Land conservation groups must partner to attract new voices to the table, discover new strategies and approaches, and build stronger alliances. This summit seeks to enhance and strengthen our efforts collectively and to create a healthy and prosperous future for all of Maryland.
Useful Links
Partners for Open Space Website
Maryland Environmental Trust Website
