Dear Friends,

As we rev up for the fall conservation season (cool weather can’t come soon enough!) I want to thank each of you for making our work possible. Because of your support, Land Trust for Louisiana continues to protect and restore the places we love — places that tie us to our unique history and heritage.

Read on to learn more about our work in progress, and important ways you can continue to engage with us! Your investment is what drives our work and builds a better future for Louisiana.

Conservation Easement News

We’re working on closing several easements this year, including one in Lincoln Parish where a family is permanently protecting approximately 50acres. This acreage will connect with neighboring conserved lands to create nearly 500 contiguous acres of protected short leaf pine-oak-hickory habitat

On the Northshore, the Land Trust is working with three families to preserve their generational properties, keeping valuable wildlife habitat and urban green space intact.

We’re also continuing our partnership with the American Battlefield Trust to conserve an important historic tract adjacent to the Chalmette Battlefield.

One of our most important responsibilities as a land trust, and one we don’t talk about much, is caring for the conservation easements already entrusted to us. This year, we’ve continued monitoring the dozens of protected properties under our care, ensuring that their conservation value is preserved. We are always working through new challenges as they come up, and this year has been no different, but the end result — land protected forever — couldn’t be more worth it!

Conservation Funding Secured

This has also been an exceptional year for securing grant funding to help landowners and public partners achieve their land management goals. We’re grateful to continue our work with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Through a large grant from them, we’re restoring longleaf pine forests with a new focus on improving habitat for the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. We’ve also launched a new state partnership with State Parks via Louisiana Outdoors Forever funding that will support restoration work in Bogue Chitto and Fontainebleau State Parks. These efforts will include invasive species management, native habitat restoration, and environmental education.

Kids in Nature: Seeking School & Teacher Nominations

One new initiative we’re especially excited about is our new Kids in Nature program, which is on track to launch this fall. We believe introducing children to Louisiana’s outdoors through hands-on experiences is one of the best investments we can make for the future of conservation. We know that people care for what they love, and our goal is to provide opportunities on the land for this love and awe to take hold through activities like canoeing, making art, hiking and other hands-on fun!

You can help us launch this exciting new program by nominating a teacher, school or youth organization on the Northshore to partner with us! Check out the Kids in Nature website to learn more, and fill out the nomination form. 

More behind the scenes: We’ve continued strengthening our organization by successfully completing our annual audit, advancing a very rigorous accreditation renewal, and reducing operating expenses so that more of every dollar supports on-the-ground results.

While grants make many of our projects possible, they don’t fund everything we do. The generosity of our members and donors gives us the flexibility to respond when new conservation opportunities arise and helps sustain the work that happens every day behind the scenes.

Last but not least… I have to put a plug in for this perfect seafood serving pirogue, on auction now through Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Company. The winning bid will support our work here at Land Trust for Louisiana, and you’ll have an amazing serving piece to share with your friends and family! 

Thank you for your continued confidence in Land Trust for Louisiana. Our partnership is changing the face of Louisiana for good.

Cindy Brown
Executive Director, Land Trust for Louisiana