Today this community is indeed a force, having conserved 61 million acres to date, according to the latest National Land Trust Census. It is a community connected by purpose and values. Land trusts may not all work in the same landscapes or conduct the same types of transactions, but they all value land protection for the diverse benefits it brings — from protecting working lands and the livelihoods that go with them, to securing wildlife habitat, clean drinking water, carbon-storing forests and so much more. Land and the Land Trust Alliance are the threads that tie this community together, from past to present to future.

As the Alliance looks to the next 40 years, the path for conservation looks very different than it did in 1982. The challenges that must be tackled are immense — the crises of biodiversity loss, climate change and inequity in conservation and access to land, among others. But these challenges also represent an opportunity, to forge a new path that achieves conservation for the greater good of all.

“The land trust community has already made huge contributions to the world, and now we are poised to lead the way forward in overcoming the challenges that lie ahead. It won’t be easy, but it’s a role we’ve had 40 years to perfect. We’re ready to give it our all.”
Andrew Bowman, Land Trust Alliance president and CEO

1982-1999

1981

The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy convenes the National Consultation on Local Land Conservation forum to discuss the growing land trust movement and need for a national organization for land trusts.

1982

The Land Trust Exchange is incorporated on Feb. 22 in Boston “exclusively for the benefit of … publicly supported local, state and regional private and public organizations that are engaged in land and related natural resource conservation.” Its first executive director is Allan Spader, followed by Ben Emory the next year.

The first issue of Exchange (now Saving Land magazine) is published.

1985

The first Rally: The National Land Conservation Conference is held in Washington, D.C., with 257 people in attendance.

1989

The Alliance works with its members to create Land Trust Standards and Practices to ensure that land trusts uphold the public’s confidence in land conservation by operating legally, ethically and in the public interest, with a sound program of land transaction and stewardship.

1998

In partnership with The Conservation Fund, the Alliance introduces the Land Conservation Leadership Program.

2000-2009

2005

Alliance President Rand Wentworth testifies before the Senate Finance Committee on behalf of the larger conservation community following reports of misuse of the misuse of the federal tax deduction for conservation easement donations. Wentworth pledges the community to integrity.

2006

The Alliance establishes the Land Trust Accreditation Commission as an independent program to build and recognize land trusts that meet the highest national standards for excellence and conservation permanence.

The Alliance leads a diverse coalition of more than 40 organizations to win enactment of changes that increase the incentive for land-rich, cash- poor farmers and ranchers by as much as tenfold, resulting in a donation increase of 500,000 acres over the next two years.

2007

The Learning Center launches, providing online access to resources and tools to help land trusts achieve success.

2008

The Alliance creates a Conservation Defense Fund and national network to help win the legal battles most important for the land trust community.

2010-2019

2010

The Alliance grows its advocacy efforts, successfully lobbying Congress to renew the enhanced federal tax incentive for conservation easement donations.

The Accreditation Commission accredits its 100th land trust.

2011

Terrafirma Risk Retention Group LLC, a one- of-a-kind insurance program that helps land trusts offset the costs of legal action to defend their conservation easements and fee-owned land, is formed.

2012

The first Land Trust Lobby Day, later renamed Land Trust Advocacy Days, is held in Washington, D.C.

2013

The Alliance launches its Community Conservation Program to help address inequities in access to land, open space and a healthy environment. Today, the work is referred to as community-centered conservation.

2015

The permanent conservation tax incentive for conservation easement donations is enacted by Congress, the result of 20 years of advocacy work led by the Alliance. The legislation is hailed as a strong bipartisan victory.

2017

The Alliance launches a new Land and Climate Program.

2018

The Alliance celebrates passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which includes $450 million a year for the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP), among other conservation funding that the Alliance helps secure.

2019

The Alliance brings together a coalition of organizations to call for immediate passage of the Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act, legislation that would stop ongoing abuse of the federal incentive for conservation easement donations.

The Alliance launches Common Ground: Creating a Shared Vision for Conservation, a listening and learning project to help inform the way forward for community-centered conservation.

2020-2022

2020

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Alliance hosts a virtual Rally attended by 3,773 people, more than any previous Rally. Alliance President and CEO Andrew Bowman challenges the land trust community to conserve 60 million acres by the end of 2030.

Congress passes the Great American Outdoors Act, which provides dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The Alliance worked with a vast coalition of conservation organizations to advocate for the legislation.

2021

Results from the Alliance’s 2020 National Land Trust Census are published, showing the collective impact of land trusts across the country to protect land — 61 million acres to date — and address the needs of their communities.

2022

The Alliance celebrates 40 years of progress in private land conservation.