Workshop Descriptions
For webinar links, visit the special conference page and enter the password from your registration confirmation email.
For presenter bios, click here.
Resources shared during each webinar are listed after its description below.
Tuesday, March 8
9:30 am
Conference Kick Off
9:35-10:50am
Raise the Bar; Lower the Barriers – Making your land trust properties more accessible
Two Maine-based adaptive adventure advocates will share the Zoom screen to tell a story that is part inspiration, part aspiration, part actual instruction. Enock Glidden of Go Beyond the Fence and Zach Stegeman of the Adaptive Outdoor Education Center are teaming up to take us down their path into the adaptive adventure world and how you can make your land trust lands more accessible and more inviting to Maine’s many adaptive populations. Through the lens of their personal and professional experiences, Enock and Zach will cover ground from inclusive language when talking to and about adaptive visitors to tangible property and marketing ideas. We think you’ll come away from the session confident you already have tools to welcome a diverse range of visitors to your properties and inspired to apply them with a little extra leverage from Zach and Enock’s shared stories.
Presenters: Enock Glidden, disabled athlete, adventurer, motivational speaker, and an advocate for others with disabilities; and Zach Stegeman, Adaptive Outdoor Recreation Center, Brunswick
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- Open to All: A Disability Inclusion Guide for Land Trusts – examples, advice and guidelines to help your land trust address and remove the barriers that prevent inclusion of people with disabilities in your programs and on your nature preserves
- Maine Trail Finder – Finding Accessible Trails
- Adaptive Outdoor Education Center – how to get involved at AOEC plus a super helpful volunteer manual for working with people with disabilities, much of the guidance applies to working with any group that might be perceived as “different”
- RespectAbility.org
- DisabilityCompendium.org
- Autism Society of Maine
- Maine Developmental Disability Council
- University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies (CCIDS)
Wednesday, March 9
9:30-10:45 am
The Power of Birds to Amplify Conservation, Stewardship and Community Outreach
Land trusts are an increasingly popular and proven mechanism to protect private lands, create climate resiliency in protected areas, and conserve wildlife within these habitats. In light of a 2019 paper in the journal Science that finds a net population loss of almost three billion birds since 1970, supporting the efforts of land trusts with implementation of practices on private lands can make a significant difference. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology believes land trusts can help birds, and birds can benefit land trusts. This workshop will introduce the Cornell Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative, its various resources and birding tools such as eBird, and introduce a case study from the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy – all illustrating how birds can be useful in making decisions about your conservation investments, foster partnerships and reach diverse audiences, and accelerate and amplify conservation and land stewardship on land trust properties and easements.
Presenters: Sara Barker, Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative Program Leader, Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Laura Suomi-Lecker, Technical Director and Manager of Ag Allies, Somerset County Soil and Water Conservation District; and Maeve McGowan
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology
- Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative
- Funding Source Directory
- eBird Maine
- eBird Science – maps, tools, research, etc
- Ag Allies Grassland Bird Conservation
Tuesday, March 15
9:30-10:45am
Governance Really Matters: Are You Ready for Leadership Succession?
Organizational governance matters seem to always fall to the bottom of the priority list with many organizations. Join an engaging conversation with Chebeague & Cumberland Land Trust leaders, Penny Asherman and Rod Vogel, to hear their story of a 5-year journey building a road map and implementation plan to increasing leadership engagement opportunities and planning for succession at the board level. The conversation will be moderated by Jennifer Hutchins from the Maine Association of Nonprofits, and will include an opportunity to workshop some of your own challenges.
Presenters: Penny Asherman, Chebeague & Cumberland Land Trust; Jennifer Hutchins, Maine Association of Nonprofits, and Rod Vogel, Natural Partners, LLC
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- Maine Association of Nonprofits Governance Programs & Services – Conference attendees receive 50% discount through May 31st, 2022 on these items. See your Week 2 Recordings email or contact Donna for the code.
Thursday, March, 17
10:30am-11:45pm
Effective Board Financial Oversight
Engaging your board in financial oversight is critical to the long-term health and stability of your land trust. Rethink your Board’s financial oversight and direction- setting roles and explore new tools and strategies to build Board understanding of your land trust’s greatest financial risks and key financial choices. Join land trust Board members, Executive Directors, fiscal staff, and Treasurers to explore ways to streamline financial reporting, improve dashboards, and focus board and finance committee discussions on issues that matter most to the future of your land trust.
Presenter: Kay Sohl, Kay Sohl Consulting
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- Financial Guidance Compiled – from the Land Trust Alliance
Tuesday, March 22
9:30-10:45am
Measuring What Matters! Fundraising Metrics: Surrounded by Data but No Information
Metrics matter. Period. But not the metrics that many people think of and not the way in which many people use them. We are surrounded by data, but we don’t have the information needed to make decisions. For example, metrics shouldn’t be used to justify our existence. They should be used to change our behavior – adapt to our changing environment. They should be used to help predict what will happen in the coming months and years. We use scientific method in every other aspect of our mission and programs. It’s time to apply these principles to our fundraising as well. This workshop is for fund development staff and Board volunteers at all levels of fundraising experience who want to go beyond simply counting stuff.
Presenter: David Allen, Development for Conservation
Measuring What Matters! Fundraising Metrics David Allen presentation slides
Wednesday, March 23
11:00am-12:15pm
Creative Approaches to Raising More $$$
With more than 1,700 land trusts in the country, not to mention all the other non-profits out there, it’s not hard to find someone doing something new. But as nearly everyone who tried the ice-bucket challenge knows, not every idea will work equally well everywhere. How can we identify ideas with promise for us? Before we waste a lot of time and money trying it ourselves? This workshop is for fund development staff and Board volunteers at all levels of fundraising experience. Participants will explore several factors to help make decisions about what to try as well as several specific ideas that I have seen work in multiple contexts.
Presenter: David Allen, Development for Conservation
Creative Approaches to Raising More Money David Allen presentation slides
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- First Thing Tuesday – David Allen’s weekly blog
- Realty Gift Fund – group of nonprofit and real estate professionals with a mission to promote the charitable giving of real estate by accepting real estate gifts, fixing or remediating assets for market, converting them to cash, and using the net proceeds to make grants to other non-profit organizations for current and planned gifts
Thursday, March 24
9:30-10:45am
Become the Solution: Engaging Your Community in Conversations to Find Common Ground
Join The Climate Initiative to learn about Community Conversations and how your land trust can foster creative thinking, solution-finding, and consensus-building around climate change effects in your community by partnering with empowered youth.
Designed to bring communities together, Community Conversations create common ground in the face of a real-time problem. We know that this generation of youth is entering a different world in the face of our changing climate. With their help and passion, Community Conversations can move us from fear to hope and from talking to action as we navigate tough decisions and conversations. This session will give you the framework to hold Community Conversations in your region to inspire curiosity and grassroots actions. We have so much to do, and it all starts with a conversation.
We know that this is a global problem, but our land trusts can be a part of the solution by working together to save the places we love.
Presenter: Leia Lowery, Director of Programs and Outreach, The Climate Initiative
Become the Solution: Engaging Your Community in Conversations to Find Common Ground slides
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
- Community Conversations Program – The Climate Initiative
- Community Conversations, Kennebunk – video on YouTube
- En-ROADS Climate Solutions Simulator – a free online simulator that provides policymakers, educators, businesses, the media, and the public with the ability to test and explore cross-sector climate solutions
- Land Trust Community Conversation Grant – $500 grant to the first 10 land trusts to try community conversations in their localities and provide feedback to TCI. Together, we can create stronger more vibrant communities.
Tuesday, March 29
9:30-10:45am
At The Speed of Trust: The Role of First Light Conservation Community Delegation
For the last year or so, a small group of people from the conservation community have been bringing their land conservation skills and experience into a conversation around increasing land and access for Wabanaki people. In this session, the current set of representatives who serve on the Conservation Community Delegation, which responds to the requests and needs of the Wabanaki Commission on Land and Stewardship ‘Nil yut ktahkomiq nik’ (the whole earth is our home), will introduce what tasks and projects they are working on. These include questions like cultural access needs and tools, land acknowledgements, land projects with or for Tribes, and more. The Commission and its role will also be explained, and there will be time for conversation and questions.
Presenters: Jess Burton, Executive Director, Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative; Susan Caldwell, Conservation Manager, The Nature Conservancy in Maine; Molly Payne Wynne, Freshwater Program Director, The Nature Conservancy in Maine; Kristin Peet, Forestland Conservation Specialist, Forest Society of Maine; Darren Ranco, Chair of Native American Programs and Coordinator of Native American Research, Department of Anthropology, University of Maine; Steve Tatko, Director of Maine Conservation and Land Management, Appalachian Mountain Club; Ciona Ulbrich, Senior Project Manager, Maine Coast Heritage Trust; Bryan Wentzell, Executive Director, Maine Mountain Collaborative
The following resources were shared during this webinar:
Conservation Community Delegation for Wabanaki Engagement
Wabanaki Commission on Land and Stewardship Nil yut ktahkomiq nik (the whole earth is our home)
Wabanaki REACH, Truth-Healing-Change
Sunlight Media Collective – an organization of indigenous and non-indigenous media makers and activists, including Wabanaki tribal members, working to document and present stories affecting Wabanaki people and highlighting Wabanaki perspectives, with a particular emphasis on the intersection between environmental issues and tribal rights.
Thursday, March 31
1:00-2:15pm
Facilitating Wabanaki Access to Traditional Wabanaki Territory for Cultural Uses
This workshop will give some history of cultural background on traditional Wabanaki land uses, describe what how such cultural uses are still carried on today might include and why they are important. We will also talk about some tools being developed for securing or granting access for cultural use and respect.
Presenters: Michael-Corey F. Hinton, Attorney at law, Drummond Woodsum; Steve Tatko, Director of Maine Conservation and Land Management, Appalachian Mountain Club; and Ciona Ulbrich, Senior Project Manager, Maine Coast Heritage Trust