What is a land trust?

Conservation Florida is a member of the Land Trust Alliance (LTA), which is a national nonprofit that represents more than 1,700 land trusts. In addition to providing educational resources to land trusts, the LTA also sets overarching standards and best practices that help govern land trust operations. The LTA defines a land trust as “a nonprofit organization that, as all or part of its mission, actively works to conserve land by acquiring land or conservation easements (or assisting with their acquisition) and stewarding or managing land or conservation easements.” We are one of the only land trusts in Florida working statewide, and we are one of only five land trusts in Florida with national accreditation by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission.

Where do we work?

We work statewide with a focus on connecting land within the Florida Wildlife Corridor. 

With so many incredible conservation opportunities to consider, we use the best available science to help us determine the location of lands with the highest conservation values and greatest likelihood for success. Our decisions are informed by the Florida Ecological Greenways Network (FEGN) and the Florida Natural Areas Inventory databases and the Florida 2070 study.

How do we protect land?

As a nationally accredited land trust, numerous standards and practices govern our process of protecting land. It is a complex process that involves many steps, and it can take years to complete one land protection project.

Every project is unique, and our role often varies and may include all or some of the following: developing conservation strategies, exploring funding sources and, in some instances, purchasing or accepting donations of land and conservation easements. In short, we protect land by cooperating with landowners and other agencies to find the best, most cooperative protection strategy for each project.