Dear ,
 We are proud to introduce two newly redesigned resources
this month to help you do your work better and invite more people to become involved
in the conservation community - our new
public website and completely
redesigned magazine. Our website has been restructured to make it easier to
find the information you need, and is full of beautiful photos and stories to
help convey the importance of land conservation to a wider audience.
Very
soon you will be receiving the first issue of Saving
Land, our dynamic new magazine that replaces Exchange.
In it you will still find all the information you need, but will be pleasantly
surprised by new material, as well as an easier-on-the-eye format.
Last
week we also took time to celebrate our success in renewing the conservation tax
incentive with a reception honoring leaders in Congress who helped make this two-year
extension possible. Thank you to the hundreds of land trust leaders who helped
achieve this victory! 
Rand
Wentworth
President, Land Trust Alliance
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| Our Magazine
Gets a New Look |  Our new magazine, Saving Land, is on its way to our members.
The new format is more readable and offers new columns on fundraising, board tips,
people, resources and news. From the technical to the inspirational, Saving Land
will present not just the "how" of what we do, but also the "why." Take
a sneak peek at the feature articles on local food, small land trusts and
conservation defense.
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| Landowner Outreach
Tools for Land Trusts | We
have two more years to show Congress just how successful the easement incentive
can be. We hope you'll take a moment to get started by using this "Grassroots Toolkit" the Alliance created,
full of materials for media outreach and events to share news of the easement
incentive with landowners in your area. It contains templates you can customize,
such as press releases, newsletter articles, and thank you letters to Congress.
With your help, we can use this incentive to change the future of the
American landscape.
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| Celebrating
Tax Incentive Success |
The tax incentive could not have been passed without the support of our broad
coalition that we can't thank enough. Last week we celebrated with a reception
honoring Senators Max Baucus (D-MT) and Charles Grassley (R-IA), Representatives
Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Dave Camp (R-MI), and others who helped make this two-year
extension possible. Rock Ringling of Montana Land Reliance and Glen Chown of Grand
Traverse Regional Land Conservancy (MI) attended to help present awards, only
two among the hundreds of land trust leaders who helped achieve this victory.
See photos and quotes from the reception.
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| Apply for a
Scholarship to Attend Rally |
Rally registration is NOW
OPEN! Save your spot at the largest conservation conference in the country
~ Field trips are filling up fast! At Rally, celebrate successful conservation
in our communities; be inspired by teachers and authors who remind us why we do
this work; and hone your skills to be even better at saving the places people
love.
Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors, scholarships
are available to help members of the conservation community attend Rally. Take
advantage of this opportunity and apply to come
to Pittsburgh! For media registrations, contact pressroom@lta.org.
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| New Board Member
Track | This year
Rally will feature a new
track exclusively for Board Members that contains sessions that cover topics
and issues from the perspective of board members and/or all-volunteer land trusts.
"Rally was enormously helpful to me in learning about the issues confronting land
trusts, the tools to conserve land and perform stewardship of it, and also the
chance to meet other people in the land trust movement," said Kathy Reiser, former
board member of Katy Prairie Conservancy in Texas.
We also encourage
all board members to join their peers at the inaugural Special Board Member Summit on Friday, September 19th. Here you
can delve into the unique leadership challenges you face and help design future
Alliance programs to meet your needs. Back
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| Federal Indictment
for Violation of NRCS Easement |
In what is believed to be one of the first prosecutions of its kind in America,
a federal grand jury in Wisconsin indicted a landowner with one felony count of
theft of government property for violating a conservation easement held by the
Natural Resources Conservation Service. NRCS, an agency of the United States Department
of Agriculture, paid the landowner more than $200,000 for the easement which prohibits
timber cutting without NRCS approval. More...
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| Innovative and
Compassionate Solution to Trespass Problem | A homeless camper living on one of the Three Rivers Land
Conservancy's preserves in Oregon caused neighborhood consternation as well as
a liability and debris problem. The conservancy solved the problem by speaking
with the camper and connecting him with a nonprofit organization assisting homeless
people to make successful and sustainable transitions into permanent housing.
More...
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| Land Trust Accreditation
Commission Seeking Volunteer Commissioners | The Land Trust Accreditation Commission has issued an open
call for individuals interested in serving as volunteer commissioners. This is
an exciting opportunity to be part of the new land trust accreditation program,
work with a strong team of commissioners and learn about conservation practices
across the country. The Commission will review the qualifications of interested
individuals and provide recommendations on nominees to the Alliance. More...
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| Colorado's Easement
Tax Credit Made Stronger |  A new state law enacted
by Gov. Bill Ritter on June 5 supports Colorado's incentives for preserving unique
natural lands by sending a strong message that abuses of the program won't be
tolerated. The bill's tougher standards include:
- Increased accountability
for conservation easement appraisals
- A certification program for the
groups that hold conservation easements
- Strengthened oversight and enforcement
of the state tax credit
- The creation of a Conservation Easement Oversight
Commission
More...
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eNews is edited and produced by Francesca Dalleo, Communications
Specialist at the Alliance. This issue was sent to: archive_email@informz.net Land
Trust Alliance
1660 L St NW, Suite 1100, Washington DC 20036
p: (202)
638-4725, f: (202) 638-4730
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Congratulations to Stan Lilley, Executive Director of
Chippewa Watershed Conservancy in Michigan. He's the winner of April's Rally trivia!
