Yesterday, both houses of the Maine legislature voted overwhelmingly to approve a two-year state budget (House vote and Senate vote) that includes $40 million for the Land for Maine’s Future Program. With the Governor’s signature it will become law today, providing new funds for the program for the first time since 2012. Over the next four years LMF can once again spend up to $10 million annually. This is the culmination of a five-year effort that included a 30th anniversary celebration of LMF in 2017, the creation of a Conservation Task Force in 2018, and an ongoing partnership between Maine land trusts and the state’s leading sportsmen organizations. Stay tuned for more information in the weeks ahead but for now this is incredible news! In the meantime, please thank your local legislators who supported this legislation and be sure to send special thanks to Governor Mills, Senator Breen, and Representative Corey for their bipartisan leadership on this issue.
Join Us for a Conversation on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Monday, July 19th, 2021
12:00-1:00pm
Cost: Free but registration required
A small working group of the Maine Land Trust Network has been looking at ways to support Maine land trusts that are thinking about diversity, equity, and inclusion at their organizations. You are invited to join us for a community conversation via Zoom where we will share our process, model some of the tools we’ve been using, and open up a conversation. Click here to read our post on the MLTN website, and register for the meeting here.
We are also planning a second conversation, with more information to share, on Monday, September 20th, at 3:00pm. Register now and mark you calendars to be part of the discussion!
Conserving Plant Diversity in New England
Native Plant Trust and The Nature Conservancy have released a comprehensive report entitled Conserving Plant Diversity in New England resulting from a two-year collaboration between the organizations. The report provides a scientific framework and detailed roadmap for conservation action and land protection at the species, habitat, and parcel scales that will save plant diversity—and thus overall biodiversity—in New England as the climate changes. This is the first report to focus on regional plant diversity, climate resilience, and science-based targets as the foundation for conservation policy and action. The report and interactive mapping tool give policy makers, federal and state agencies, and land trusts the benchmarks and data to most effectively spend conservation dollars by protecting climate-resilient sites that capture plant and habitat diversity. Among the report’s conclusions is that saving plant diversity will require conserving an additional 2.3 million acres of land in specific habitats and locations across New England.
State Outdoor Business Alliance Network Summer 2021 Report
The State Outdoor Business Alliance Network has released its Summer 2021 report: Inspiring the Future Outdoor Recreation Economy. It has an excellent infographic about the numerous ways outdoor recreation supports economic success (and it’s not just tourism) and includes some good quotes from Maine! View the PDF of the report here and learn more at SOBAN’s website.
White Saviorism: Knowing Your Role in Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion
Thursday, July 15th, 2021
10:00am-1:00pm
Cost: $89 for MANP members*, $129 for nonmembers
Brought to you thanks to a partnership between Maine Association of Nonprofits and Minnesota Council of Nonprofits
As White folks, we often do not seek to understand what our role is in anti-racism, equity and inclusion, even in our own workplaces and community spaces. This training will help you understand the 8 White Identities and find your role in the ongoing work of racial and social justice in our communities. All learner types were thought of when planning this training, with times for individual reflection, small group work, and full group sharing.
Learn more and register at MANP’s website and be sure use the discount code.
*Most MLTN members are MANP members. Contact Donna to check on your MLTN membership status.
Second Round of Applications for Invasive Plant Control Plans for Public and Private Woodland Owners
Applications Due: July 12th, 2021
The Maine Forest Service will provide up to $85,000 over the next two years for local governments, municipalities, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, and private family woodland owners to obtain Invasive Plant Control Practice Plans (IPCPP) for their woods. Supported by a grant from the USDA Forest Service, financial incentives for these plans are available to public and private woodland owners with ten to one thousand wooded acres in Maine. Reimbursement of up to 50% of the cost of an IPCPP is based on the number of acres covered in the plan. An average woodlot with between 10 and 100 acres may receive up to $400 maximum incentive; larger lots will have larger maximum incentive amounts. The plans will provide woodland owners with maps and treatment recommendations for invasive plants on their land.
A corps of natural resource professionals trained through the program’s Invasive Plant Academy are eligible to develop IPCPPs. A list of trained plan preparers is available on the Maine Forest Service’s Invasive Plant Management Program web page. Landowners with approved IPCPPs will be eligible to apply for the next phase of the program, to receive free invasive plant treatment conducted by a contractor hired by the Maine Forest Service.
To apply for Round 2 of the 2021 Invasive Plant Control Practice Plan, an application must be complete and submitted by 5PM on July 12, 2021. A list of natural resource professionals provisionally eligible to develop IPCPPs is available here. To learn more about the new visit the Invasive Plant Management Program web page, or contact Program Manager Jan Santerre at (207) 287-4987
Jobs in the Conservation Sector
New opportunities available now. Click here for full list.
With generous support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Jane’s Trust Foundation, the J.M. Kaplan Fund, and the William Penn Foundation, the Open Space Institute is pleased to announce the availability of Land and Climate Catalyst Planning Grants through a collaboration with Land Trust Alliance. The Land and Climate Grant Program will offer funding and technical support to land trusts, other not-for-profit organizations, and state and federally recognized Tribes, to integrate climate science into strategic land protection or land management plans.
The Program will provide support for the development of strategic land protection or management plans that promote:
habitat resilience
carbon mitigation
adaptation to climate impacts such as flood, drought, fire or extreme heat.
The Program complements OSI’s capital grantmaking through the Appalachian Landscapes Protection Fund, which has a goal of permanently protecting 50,000 acres of climate resilient lands that store and sequester atmospheric carbon.
For more information, visit OSI’s website and review the request for proposals. If you have additional questions, contact OSI Conservation Planning Coordinator Hallie Schwab: .
Farm Credit East AgEnhancement Grants
Applications Due: August 1st, 2021
Since 1996, Farm Credit East has awarded grants through the Farm Credit AgEnhancement Program to help organizations promote awareness of and strengthen agriculture, commercial fishing, and forestry in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, and Vermont. Through the program, grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to programs, projects, and activities that assist in the development of young and beginning farmers working to strengthen agriculture and the food and fiber industries by encouraging leadership development, generating a greater understanding and appreciation, recognizing the accomplishments of leaders in the industry, and advancing the economic viability of agriculture and the food and fiber industries in the region. In addition, these programs will also promote interest in agriculture/horticulture/forest products/commercial fishing.
