FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rob Aldrich
Director of Communications
202-638-4725 | raldrich@lta.org
Photos available; email pressroom@lta.org

 

Friend of the Blue Ridge Mountains

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Every year, one land conservation leader is selected to receive the Land Trust Alliance’s prestigious National Conservation Service Award for making a significant contribution to the advancement of land conservation.  Mr. Tommy Wyche, Esq. an indefatigable voice for the Blue Ridge Mountains for the past 40 years, was presented with the award this year at Rally: The National Land Conservation Conference in Milwaukee, WI, on October 14, 2011. 

Mr. Wyche is an extraordinary individual who has spent decades tirelessly working for the protection of 90,000 acres of the Blue Ridge Escarpment in North and South Carolina.  The Cherokee call the Escarpment where the Blue Ridge Mountains come to a sudden and dramatic end and drop off 2,000 feet “The Blue Wall.” It is a wonderful showcase of cliffs, gorges and waterfalls that has been recognized as a “global hot spot” for biological diversity.  

In an effort to conserve this gemstone, Wyche founded the Naturaland Trust in 1972 to spearhead the effort.  From Duke Power holding 50,000 acres to the Greenville Water System holding 10,000 acres – he then worked with all the landowners in that area to protect 12,000 camp site acres. By engaging the generosity of the R.K. Mellon Foundation through a challenge grant, he challenged all the entities from the power and water companies to the states of North Carolina and South Carolina. He even hired crews of high school and college students to construct trails, engaging the next generation of conservationists. Never one to rest on his laurels, Wyche has devoted the last 10 years to protecting other important missing pieces of the Blue Wall, comprising over 25,000 acres.

An avid outdoorsman, Wyche has spent two two-week backpacking trips to Alaska, one in Kenai Peninsula, one in the Brooks Range above the Arctic Circle; he has traveled on a 320-mile canoe trip with his daughter from the Atlantic Ocean up St. Mary's River, through the Okefenokee Swamp and down the Suwanee River to the Gulf of Mexico; and has made a three-week trek in Nepal, climbing to Lake TeIIicho, one of the highest lakes in the world at 15,600 feet. His is also an accomplished engineer with three patents, has designed and sponsored one of the only suspension bridges in South Carolina constructed over Raven Cliff Falls in the Mountain Bridge Wilderness, and has authored several books, including "Conserve A Legacy: Natural Lands and Waters in South Carolina." (2009). Married, with three children, Wyche resides in Greenville, SC.

And while Mr. Wyche couldn’t be at Rally, we welcomed Frank Holleman to accept the award on his behalf.

About The Land Trust Alliance

The Alliance is a national conservation organization that works in three ways to save the places people love.  First, we increase the pace of conservation, so more land and natural resources get protected.  Second, we enhance the quality of conservation, so the most important lands get protected using the best practices in the business. And third, we ensure the permanence of conservation by creating the laws and resources needed to defend protected land over time. The Land Trust Alliance is based in Washington, D.C., and has several regional offices.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rob Aldrich
Director of Communications
202-638-4725 | raldrich@lta.org

 

Excellence in Collaboration
For Impacting Whole Landscapes

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Scenic Hudson has been presented with a national conservation award for its pioneering work in the land trust field in developing and implementing collaborative conservation management plans for important natural landscapes.

Scenic Hudson was selected by the Land Trust Alliance of Washington, D.C., from more than 1,700 land trusts across the country, to receive its National Land Trust Excellence Award, which was presented at Rally: The National Land Conservation Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on October 14, 2011.

Scenic Hudson is an impactful environmental organization and land trust working in New York’s Hudson River Valley to protect and restore the Hudson River and its majestic landscape.  A crusader for the valley since 1963, Scenic Hudson is credited with saving the beautiful Storm King Mountain from a destructive industrial project and helping to launch the modern environmental movement.

“Scenic Hudson was born of the passion of people who loved the place and said ‘no’ to destruction of an icon and of a sacred mountain,” said Rand Wentworth, president of the Land Trust Alliance. “We presented this award because of Scenic Hudson’s breadth of vision and their accomplishment. They have embraced the concept of large landscapes, have been a model partner in engaging with diverse communities, people of color and other nonprofits. They have put their money and efforts in doing their work where people live for healthy communities.”

Having conserved almost 28,000 acres of lands that contribute to the scenic fabric, ecological integrity and agricultural viability of the Hudson River Valley, Scenic Hudson has a long and distinguished track record of collaborative conservation -- designing a model for conservation easements and establishing a collaborative process.  The tangible outcomes resulting from this process helped spur several municipalities to create their own farmland protection programs and funding streams.  Scenic Hudson has collaborated with several of these communities to conserve farms that are shared priorities.    

Scenic Hudson has contributed to a spirit of collaboration and information-sharing between the land trusts of the Hudson Valley.  This has occurred at an especially critical time because of the economic downturn and the stress that many nonprofit land trusts are feeling. In 2007, Scenic Hudson carried out a strategic land conservation plan, using geographic information systems technology, to identify the most critical scenic, ecological and agricultural resources in the Hudson River corridor.  The result of this analysis was the identification of 65,000 acres of land of the utmost conservation priority.  Scenic Hudson then launched a collaborative land conservation campaign, which it calls Saving the Land That Matters Most, to increase the pace and impact of their work.

It engaged in this campaign with 15 partner land trusts and conservation organizations, including county and local land trusts, regional and national conservation organizations.  The groups meet several times a year to update each other on progress in meeting shared goals, and to identify ways to collaborate further.  Today, Scenic Hudson is further partnering with state conservation agencies on the pursuit of shared conservation goals for the region.  

“I look at Scenic Hudson and I think: What would I aspire for any of us in land conservation to do? Working in cities, working with diverse populations, working with great partners, bringing farm-to-table, connecting the agriculture communities with the urban communities; Scenic Hudson is doing all of that,” said Wentworth.

When presented with the award, Steve Rosenberg, senior vice president; executive director of the Scenic Hudson Land Trust, Inc. said: Our mission will always outstrip our means …so to be mission driven and outcome oriented, there’s no room for thinking we can do this without a strategic framework and without the support of others.” Rosenberg added, “We are fortunate to have so many committed partners working with us. As we continue our work, we are beginning to see the puzzle pieces come together to reveal a picture of regional, landscape-scale conservation, and the public increasingly understands and supports our work.”

About The Land Trust Alliance

The Land Trust Alliance is a national conservation organization that works in three ways to save the places people love. First, we increase the pace of conservation, so more land and natural resources get protected.  Second, we enhance the quality of conservation, so the most important lands get protected using the best practices in the business.  And third, we ensure the permanence of conservation by creating the laws and resources needed to defend protected land over time. The Land Trust Alliance is based in Washington, D.C., and has several regional offices.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rob Aldrich
Director of Communications
202-431-8848 | raldrich@lta.org
http://www.lta.org/rally

Leaders Gather to Plan the Future of Private Land Conservation

 

Washington, D.C. – The Land Trust Alliance today announced that the nation’s largest annual gathering of land conservation leaders will meet this fall in Milwaukee, WI, October 13-16, to celebrate land conservation in America.  Rally 2011: The National Land Conservation Conference is expected to draw more than 1,500 conservation leaders, government officials and academics.

“People in the Midwest have a great appreciation for the land and the gifts it offers.  From the bluffs of the mighty Mississippi to the tall grass prairies, and from the forested lands and farms to Lake Michigan’s scenic landscapes, communities are uniting to save the places that give meaning to our lives,” said Land Trust Alliance President Rand Wentworth.  “This commitment prioritizes the protection of clean air, clean water, wildlife, and places to explore close to home.”

Land trusts are local, state or nationwide nonprofits whose mission is to conserve land in its natural or traditional state, including farming and ranching, through voluntary agreements with landowners.  According to the latest numbers collected by the Alliance, more than 50 land trusts in Wisconsin have protected a total of 52,696 acres.

“We selected Milwaukee this year to honor the strong urban conservation ethic in this region, and also to give our supporters a chance to enjoy the state’s diverse beauty,” said Wentworth. Milwaukee features Frederick Law Olmsted's extraordinary urban parks system, and the city has made additional investments in creating green, livable and eco-friendly communities. With the Olmsted parks and an incredible network of Milwaukee County parks – as well as the celebrated urban gardens and their advancement of the local foods movement – it is on the forefront of conservation success.

The first of this year’s keynote speakers, Will Allen, has been named to Time magazine’s 2010 100 World’s Most Influential People list. He is the founder and CEO of Growing Power Inc., and is a preeminent thinker on urban agriculture and food policy. He has been invited to the White House to join First Lady Michelle Obama in her “Let’s Move” signature program, and he works tirelessly to train and support community farmers to ensure a local source of healthy food regardless of political or economic status.

Rally will also feature a keynote address from Will Rogers, CEO of the Trust for Public Land (TPL).  An innovator in urban redevelopment projects as well as the conservation of remote and inspirational wildlands, Will leads TPL in its mission to conserve land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens and other natural places, ensuring livable communities for generations to come.

Rally seminars, workshops and speakers will address national conservation trends, cutting-edge practices of land conservation and best professional standards for land trusts.  More than 110 workshops and 26 seminars are scheduled. 

MEDIA INVITED: Keynote speeches are open to representatives of the media.  To attend other workshops, trainings, field trips or seminars, registration is required.  Inquire at the registration desk at the Frontier Airlines Center, or contact Peshie Chaifetz, Communications Manager, at pchaifetz@lta.org | 301-502-9245.

About the Land Trust Alliance
The Land Trust Alliance is a national conservation organization that works in three ways to save the places people love.  First, we increase the pace of conservation, so more land and natural resources get protected.  Second, we enhance the quality of conservation, so the most important lands get protected using the best practices in the business.  And third, we ensure the permanence of conservation by providing resources needed to defend protected land over time. The Land Trust Alliance is based in Washington, D.C. Visit www.landtrustalliance.org.

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