Accreditation

We're listening!  In response to feedback from land trusts that have been through it, and a thorough review by a consultant, new changes to the accreditation process will make it more accessible to small and large land trusts alike.  These adjustments to the accreditation indicator practices will maintain the rigor of the program while reducing the time applicants spend completing the application.

For those land trusts that have already completed the process, thank you for all your valuable input that is helping to improve accreditation for everyone.  And congratulations on becoming accredited!

For those land trusts interested in applying, please see more information on the indicator practices, and visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org for complete, revised application materials.

Frequently Asked Questions about the new changes to the accreditation process

At left is a graphic that shows how previously overlapping information is now managed under the revised set of indicator practices.  Click the image to view it larger.

Recent News & Highlights

Registration Now Open for Accreditation!

Registration for rounds one and two of 2010 is now open, so if your organization is ready to demonstrate your excellence and join this impressive group, make sure to check it out today!

New Video About Accreditation

Keeping the Promise: Perpetuity and the Land Trust Accreditation Program debuted at Rally and features several land trusts that have successfully navigated the accreditation process and have emerged stronger and more effective as a result.

The video is available to watch or download on the Accreditation Commission's website. We hope you will show the video to your board and staff at your next meeting to start the conversation about accreditation.  Watch or download the video

Interview: Walter Earnest, Executive Director of the Weeks Bay Foundation -  Alabama talks about Accreditation: Watch 30 second video

Quick Reference

Chart of Alliance curriculum courses that provide information on the corresponding indicator practice

Article: Building Land Trust Capacity Through Organizational Assessments, by Henrietta Jordan, with assistance from Katrina Howey and Sylvia Bates; Exchange Magazine, Winter 2007.

Land Trust Accreditation Criteria

Applicants for voluntary land trust accreditation must demonstrate compliance with a set of accreditation indicator practices selected from Land Trust Standards and Practices.  These practices are designated by the Land Trust Alliance and indicate a land trust’s ability to operate in an ethical, legal and technically sound manner and ensure the long-term protection of land in the public interest.

Indicator practices are chosen based on the following criteria:

• Responsible governance of the organization
• Protection of the public interest with sound and sustainable land transactions and stewardship
• Ethical operations
• Accountability to donors and the public
• Compliance with all laws, such as IRC §170(h) and §501(c)(3)

Complete list of indicator practices as of January 20, 2010

About the Commission

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission was established as an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance in 2006 to operate a voluntary accreditation program to verify that land trusts are meeting the indicator practices.  The Alliance encourages all land trusts to follow the entire set of Land Trust Standards and Practices and to adopt them as guiding principles for their organizations.

The Land Trust Alliance has detailed information on how to implement the accreditation indicator practices on its online learning center.  You can access the learning center by going to http://learningcenter.lta.org.

More information on the land trust accreditation program is also available at www.landtrustaccreditation.org.