MLTN Infoline – December 17, 2024
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Building a Strategic Fundraising Program
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Maybe you’ve been thinking a lot about fundraising lately. Many land trusts raise a majority of their operating budget during the last 6 weeks of the year. But what’s the best way to raise money, and how can we be strategic, focusing our efforts where they will have the most impact? Well, MLTN and the Land Trust Alliance have partnered up to offer a fantastic (and affordable) short course – Building a Strategic Fundraising Program – exclusively for Maine land trusts. The course will be taught by David Allen of Development for Conservation. David works with many land trusts in Maine and around the country. He has delivered conference workshops for us in the past and is a regular presenter at Rally. This course was done in Massachusetts, to rave reviews. Now, we’re really excited to bring it to Maine.
The virtual course will run for four Wednesdays from 4:00-5:15pm and the cost is just $50 per organization for MLTN members. David will cover basic fundraising concepts, planning protocols, tools to develop strategic fundraising plans, approaches to fundraising from individual donors and funders, fundraising events and more to give you the tactics you need to better engage with people and raise more money. Learn more here. (Sessions will be recorded.)
Start 2025 off with this awesome training opportunity!
Angela, Jeff, Donna, and Katia
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L.L.Bean Maine Land Trust Grantees Announced
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Earlier this month, through the support of the L.L.Bean Maine Land Trust Grant Program, Maine Coast Heritage Trust awarded grants to seven organizations ranging from $8,000-$10,000 for conservation projects in six counties across the state. We are deeply appreciative of L.L.Bean’s 20-year investment in Maine’s conserved lands. Please join us in congratulating the following land trusts:
Learn more about the projects these groups will undertake, thanks to this critical financial support, on our website here.
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Maine Legislative Session Begins
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Maine’s 132nd Legislature was sworn in on Wednesday, December 4. The Senate appointed Mattie Daughtry (D-Cumberland County) as their new President, while the House chose Ryan Fecteau (D-Biddeford) as Speaker. The legislature is off until January 8th, but they will begin to meet regularly at that point through the end of June. Recently, legislative leaders announced committee assignments and informed fellow legislators that January 10th is the deadline for submitting bill proposals. Soon after, nonpartisan legislative staff will produce a list of those bill titles, which will provide information on issues likely to be taken up in 2025.
If you are looking to learn more, please register for a Zoom call on January 23, when MCHT Policy Director Jeff Romano will be leading a discussion about land trust related policies we are likely to see during the upcoming legislative session.
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2024 Land Trust Salaries and Benefits Survey Report
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The Land Trust Alliance regularly surveys the land trust community nationwide to provide a comprehensive guide that helps organizations make decisions on compensation, helps individuals negotiate their own salaries, and provides trends at the national and regional levels. The last year the report was updated was 2022. Now updated with 2024 data, the Land Trust Salaries and Benefits Survey report is available as a free PDF download to Alliance members. We’ve been told that New England land trusts are exceptionally well represented in the survey results, contributing an impressive 25.5% of all responses! This means the report is a highly reliable source of data and information on trends at your peer organizations.
Visit the LTA website for your free copy (if you’re an LTA member). If you’re not an LTA member, the cost of the report is $139.
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Identifying & Mitigating Tree Risk on Land Trust Properties
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Wednesday, January 15, 2025 via Zoom 2:00-3:30pm
Cost: $75 for LTA members, $140 for non-members
Trees in poor condition or with structural issues can create an elevated level of risk. How can land trust stewardship practitioners and others making property management decisions know what condition their trees are in, and the level of risk they pose to people or property? Join Nick Martin of Bartlett Tree Experts, who is an ISA board certified master arborist and ASCA registered consulting arborist, to learn how to manage tree-related risk factors, especially in public access areas and when trees are near structures. Nick will cover:
Visit LTA’s website to register.
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Expert Tips on Current Trends: Nonprofit Tech Round Table
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Wednesday, January 22, 2025 via Zoom 3:00-4:00pm
Cost: FREE
Presented by: Community IT Innovators
Kick off the new year with a new understanding of trends and practices that can help your nonprofit succeed. Join Community IT for a lively and specific discussion of all things nonprofit tech for 2025 and beyond. They gather their senior experts in one place and participants can ask them questions submitted at registration or live during this webinar. It’s like listening in on your smart friends talking about stuff you need to know about but don’t know who to ask!
This presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Community IT is proudly vendor-agnostic and their webinars cover a range of topics and discussions. Webinars are never a sales pitch, always a way to share our knowledge with our community.
Learn more, register for the webinar, and submit your pressing IT questions at Community IT’s website.
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GAAP Accounting for Land Trusts – A Deeper Dive
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Wednesday, January 22, 2025 via Zoom 2:00–3:30pm
Cost: $75 for LTA members, $140 for non-members
GAAP – Generally Accepted Accounting Principles – provides a common language (and some occasionally frustrating rules) for recording and reporting on land trust financial health and financial results.
In this webinar, Kay Sohl will highlight recent changes in GAAP and some continuing problem areas that can confuse land trust leaders, even those with experience reading business and government financial reports.
Learn more and register at LTA’s website.
(LTA previously offered a webinar that reviewed some of the most challenging aspects of GAAP accounting and reporting for land trusts. A recording of that GAAP Accounting for Beginners webinar is available on their website.)
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Advanced Risk Management: Land Division Legal Challenges
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Thursday, January 23, 2025 via Zoom 3:00-4:00pm
Cost: FREE
Most conservation easement deeds are designed to prohibit subdivision, and when a division in land ownership or threat thereof occurs, land trusts are charged with maintaining unified ownership, usually with the support of legal counsel. Presenters discuss two real-life subdivision cases, the implications for impermissible private benefit and federal tax deductions, the strategies they employed to successfully resolve these easement violations, and lessons learned along the way.
This event is part of the Land Trust Alliance and Terrafirma’s annual risk management webinar series. If your organization is a Terrafirma member and anyone on your staff or board attends this webinar, your organization will receive the Terrafirma risk management discount for the 2025 policy year.
Learn more and register at LTA’s website.
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Did You Know? MLTN Videos
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It may be a little hard to find (something we are working on!) but MLTN has a video library where you can access recordings of some past Lunch & Learns, conference webinars, and more. Two of our most requested recordings include:
And two new recordings you’ll find there include:
There are lots of other fun and informative videos along with those. Check them out when you have a few minutes! They are nested under the About tab on the MLTN website home page.
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Jobs in the Conservation Sector
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We’re getting into the season of seasonal job postings, but there are still many great full-time permanent positions listed on our website. Seasonal Wildlife Technician–Loon Restoration – Maine Audubon
On-call Environmental Educator – Maine Audubon
Acadia Early-Career Gero Fellowship in Science Research – Schoodic Institute
Acadia Early-Career Gero Fellowship in Science Communication – Schoodic Institute
Acadia Early-Career Gero Fellowship in Environmental Science Education – Schoodic Institute
Schoodic Education Adventure (SEA) Environmental Educator (Spring) – Schoodic Institute
Schoodic Education Adventure (SEA) Environmental Educator (Spring-Fall) – Schoodic Institute
Schoodic Education Adventure (SEA) Environmental Educator (Fall) – Schoodic Institute
Scarborough Marsh Program Manager – Scarborough Land Trust
Executive Director – Royal River Conservation Trust
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