The Landscape Conservation Bulletin |
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A bi-monthly service of the Network for
Landscape Conservation
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Dear Network Friends,
The bridge metaphor is familiar and much-used in our collaborative conservation and stewardship spaces—we recognize how important it is to “bridge” differences to achieve common goals.
At last month’s Native Americans in Philanthropy annual conference (revisit the conversations with recordings here) in Minneapolis, Nikki Pieratos (Bois Forte Band of Chippewa) of the Tiwahe Foundation, invited us to reflect on that bridge metaphor. Close your eyes, she encouraged, to picture a bridge and usually what we will envision is a structure that connects two distinct, separate elements—a body of land on the one side and a second land body on the other, with the dividing water between. But that’s not quite right, she offered, that’s not really what is happening. Though bridges suggest there is separation, not connection—beneath the water is the riverbed, a substrate of land that allows us to see not two separate, disconnected islands but rather one interconnected land mass that is only interrupted at the surface.
As we think about the landscapes and communities that we care so deeply about, let’s continue to build bridges across communities, perspectives, and cultures to reach for shared futures—but in doing so let us recognize, celebrate, and honor the substrate that binds us together, that basic humanness that we all carry and that is the foundation upon which our interactions take place.
Please enjoy this month’s Bulletin, and wishing moments of relaxation and happiness as we look ahead to the summer months—and as always, we look forward to you being in touch!
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Federal agency activities |
Sentinel Landscape designations |
Additional Landscape Conservation News |
Landscape Conservation Job Board |
Webinars & Additional Resources |
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Jonathan Peterson
Director, Network for Landscape Conservation
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Cover photo: A pollinator's paradise: The landscape was alive in color in Baltimore County, Maryland, this week during the Catalyst Fund peer learning retreat.
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Featured News
Federal agencies continue to advance Administration priorities around landscape conservation and stewardship
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Over the last month, exciting developments have emerged at the federal level that continue to provide support for locally led, collaborative conservation, stewardship, and restoration efforts across the country, as a means of responding to the interwoven biodiversity, climate, and environmental injustice crises. In April, the Bureau of Land Management formally released its new Public Lands Rule. The rule recognizes conservation as an essential component of public lands management, on equal footing with other multiple uses of these lands. This updated framework is structured around three components–protecting the most intact, healthiest landscapes; restoring landscapes back to health; and ensuring decision-making is based on science and data (including Indigenous knowledges)— and is intended to prioritize landscape health and ecosystem resilience as essential to the agency's ability to achieve its multiple use and sustained yield mission on public lands under the agency’s jurisdiction, which includes more than 245 million acres of federal public land (or more than 1/10th of the land base of the United States). Elsewhere, an interagency partnership co-led by the Department of the Interior, United States Department of Agriculture , National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Council on Environmental Quality, launched conservation.gov, an information hub designed to empower locally led efforts to conserve and restore our nation’s lands, waters, and wildlife. The new website includes the American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas, an interactive mapping tool that provides a platform for integrating science, data and knowledge on biodiversity, climate change impacts, and equity. See this piece from the Center for American Progress for high-level key initial takeaways on the Conservation Atlas. And finally, the Administration convened the White House Water Summit last month as well, where it outlined a new national goal, the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge, which aims to protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of our nation’s rivers and streams.
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Featured News
Five Sentinel Landscapes designated to address climate change impacts and strengthen military readiness
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Earlier this month, the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership—comprised of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, and Department of the Interior—celebrated the designation of five new Sentinel Landscapes. In these landscapes, partners are collaborating to mitigate climate change impacts and improve sustainable land and water management practices so that natural and working lands thrive alongside military installations. The newly designated landscapes emerging from the 2024 designation cycle are:
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- Eastern New Mexico Sentinel Landscape, New Mexico
- Great Salt Lake Sentinel Landscape, Utah
- Hawaiʻi Sentinel Landscape, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, and Hawaiʻi Island
- Kittatinny Ridge Sentinel Landscape, Pennsylvania
- Mojave Desert Sentinel Landscape, California
With these five additions, the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership now includes 17 landscapes across the country. Since 2013, the Sentinel Landscape Partnership has worked with private landowners to protect over 500,000 acres of natural and working lands and implemented sustainable management practices on an additional 2.7 million acres around military testing and training areas. These landscapes offer powerful examples of partnerships coalescing at the convergence of diverse interests, including conservation, working lands, and national defense—and how collaboration across a variety of stakeholders is critical to meaningful movement forward on landscape protection and stewardship. On Wednesday, July 24, the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership will host a webinar spotlighting these five landscapes—representatives from selected landscapes will explore their history, priorities, and alignment with the mission of the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership, and share insights from navigating the designation process.
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Additional Landscape Conservation News |
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Realizing a Nature-Positive Future in North America: Summary report from the Salazar Center’s 2023 International Symposium on Conservation Impact explores pathways to durable, high-impact outcomes for climate, biodiversity, and human well-being.
Article in Grist spotlights how Tribes in northern California are working to secure co-stewardship in the newly expanded Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument—and calls attention to the distinction between co-stewardship and co-management.
The National Forest Foundation, in partnership with the USDA Forest Service, launches the 'Collaborative Capacity Program for Forests and Communities'—a new funding and technical assistance program that aims to build capacity within and across collaborative groups to achieve forest stewardship goals in ways that are most inclusive and equitable.
The 2024 RFP is currently open for proposals through July 12, 2024
The Karuk Tribe releases Good Fire II, an updated and expanded analysis of legal and policy barriers to Indigenous-led cultural and prescribed burning–and recommended solutions for both the state and national levels.
Blogpost from the Institute for Conservation Leadership reflects on what is meant by ‘community engagement’ and how a collaborative can listen to and respond to the perspectives, needs, and assets of their community.
Article from Audubon Magazine explores the intersection of land conservation and affordable housing, highlighting how land trusts are forming new partnerships to create homes for people and wildlife.
The power of parks: Trust for Public Land releases its 2024 Parks Score report, which highlights the benefits of parks to communities and distills recommendations around general strategies on local and national levels to improve parks across the U.S.
New report from the Wildlands Network explores how far U.S. state habitat connectivity legislation has advanced, highlighting 25 years of connectivity legislation and case studies showcasing successful approaches.
For Our Future: New report, the Indigenous Resilience Report, draws on the knowledge, perspectives, and experiences of First Nations, Inuit and Métis living in what is currently known as Canada to explore the multidimensional and intersecting aspects of climate change impacts and adaptation.
Article in The Relevator highlights how water and cooperation are breathing new life into Klamath Basin Wildlife Refuges after years of intense drought.
Beyond the "Illusion of Preservation:" New report highlights the opportunity for New England to dramatically expand forest protections and sustainably meet the region’s wood product needs.
Explore the report here or read a summary article in From the Ground Up here
Water Water Everywhere: Spring issue of National Wildlife Magazine spotlights efforts underway in the Ohio River Basin—one of the most polluted watersheds in the U.S.—to restore this important ecosystem while boosting the economy and addressing environmental injustices.
From the Western Landowners Alliance comes a new publication—A Road Map to Place-based Collaboration for Conflict Reduction—detailing a ten-step guide to developing landowner-led, place-based collaborative groups with a focus on reducing wildlife-livestock conflicts.
Article from The Narwhal details how the Mushkegowuk Council in far northern Ontario is leading a massive Indigenous-led conservation project to protect the Breathing Lands, one of the most pristine, biodiverse regions on the planet.
Summary report from 2024 Conservation without Conflict Summit highlights the potential of collective efforts to build common ground for navigating the challenges of landscape conservation.
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Upcoming Conferences & Events
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Olympic Valley, California
Montreal, Quebec
Rapid City, South Dakota
Anchorage, Alaska
Madison, Wisconsin
Providence, Rhode Island
Quebec, Canada
Amherst, Massachusetts
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Landscape Conservation Job Board
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Executive Director, Stone Center for Large Landscape Conservation
Co-Executive Director, Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection
Program Officer, Wildfire Resilience Funders Network
Forest Health Project Coordinator, South Yuba River Citizens League
Communications Coordinator, Prairie Pothole Joint Venture
New England Program Manager, Open Space Institute
Individual Giving Director, Center for Large Landscape Conservation
Managing Director, Heart of the Rockies Initiative
This section of the Landscape Conservation Bulletin is intended to be a space to share job postings that will be specifically relevant to landscape conservation practitioners. We welcome submissions: if your organization would like to widely distribute a posting please be in touch.
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Webinars & Additional Resources
The National Forest Foundation's Collaborative Capacity Program for Forests and Communities is currently accepting proposals to build capacity in collaborative groups to advance long-term strategies for achieving forest stewardship outcomes that benefit National Forest Systems lands. Applications due July 12, 2024
Coalitions and Collaborations's Community Navigator Program is currently accepting proposals in response to a Community Catalyst Fund Request for Applications.This fund is intended to build community-serving organizational capacity towards climate resilience through access to funding and partnerships with the USDA Forest Service. Applications due June 6, 2024
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A learning journey towards Historically and Culturally Informed Land Conservation
June 4, 2024
A joint Center for American Progress and National Caucus of Environmental Legislators panel discussion
June 6, 2024
A NPS Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate webinar
June 12, 2024
A Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REDI) webinar
July 24, 2024
Every two weeks, your hosts sit down with thought leaders, innovators, conservationists, and scientists to raise awareness, inspire dialogue, and encourage engagement in designing sustainable and resilient landscapes before it’s too late. Large landscape conservation is complex, but Designing Nature’s Half breaks the conversation into manageable pieces for novices and experts alike.
Following cancellation of the 2020 Conservation Finance Boot Camp, the Conservation Finance Network compiled a 4-part video short course, which is available via the above link.
A weekly podcast that explores the challenges presented by adapting to climate change and the approaches the field's best minds believe are already working.
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The Network for Landscape Conservation is the community of practice for practitioners advancing collaborative, cross-boundary conservation and stewardship as an essential approach to protect nature, culture, and community in the 21st Century.
Contributions of news, upcoming events, resources, and job postings for future Bulletins are welcomed. We also welcome inquires for potential future "Perspectives: Landscapes Conservation in Action" stories; please be in touch if you are interested in sharing stories and insights from your work.
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The Network for Landscape Conservation is a fiscally sponsored project of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, P.O. Box 1587, Bozeman, MT 59771
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