mcht-7L8A3110-skinny2-blur

MLTN Infoline – March 9, 2021

Supporting a New LMF Bond

In January, a Land for Maine’s Future working group issued recommendations on how to collaborate most effectively with land trusts and other partners to meet shared goals. While the LMF Board prepares to dig into these recommendations in late March, Maine policymakers are stepping up with proposals to fund the program for the first time since 2012. Senator Cathy Breen (Cumberland County) and Representative Patrick Corey (Windham) have both submitted bills that would ask Maine voters to support LMF and State Park investments this November: LD 983 and LD 687 respectively. We also anticipate Governor Mills to announce support for a similar proposal soon.
 
As the legislature assesses these proposals in the weeks ahead, it is critical that land trusts are at the table sharing the many economic and community benefits associated with our work. Stay tuned in future Infolines for more information on how you can support this effort.
 
Help make this is the year LMF is on the ballot,
WhitJeff, and Donna
 

Maine Land Conservation Conference is One Week Away!

Registration for the 2021 Maine Land Conservation Conference is well underway and we hope to see you there! Our focus during the first week (next week) will be Climate Resilience and we have some great presenters lined up. Register now to join us on Tuesday, March 16th for Climate change 2.0: Habitat resilience meets carbon sequestration and Thursday, March 18th for Protecting Our Rivers and Coasts for the Future: Roles for Maine Land Trusts. A low price of $25 gets you access to all sessions and recordings including workshops on Indigenous Engagement, Nature-Based Education, and Building Relationships with New Visitors, as well as our Welcome Spring Concert with traveling composer-performer and keyboardist Ben Cosgrove. Please join us!
 

Board Training Series: Inclusion and Diversity (Partner Event)

Wednesday, March 17, 2021
7:30-9:00pm
Cost: $45 for MANP members*
Brought to you thanks to a partnership between Maine Association of Nonprofits and Minnesota Council of Nonprofits
Is building an inclusive and welcoming board culture a priority for your organization? While very important, even well-intended efforts to do so can be insensitive and harmful. It matters how your organization recruits board members and recruiting efforts must be done thoughtfully to create a culture that values every perspective. How do you diversify board membership? How do you set up an environment that welcomes and encourages diverse perspectives? How do you name the privilege that is in inherently in the room to ensure privileged voices sit back?
 
Visit MANP’s website for more information and to register.
 
*Most MLTN members are MANP members. Contact Donna to check on your organization’s membership status.
 

Charitable Solicitation Compliance Webinar

Thursday, March 18, 2021
1:00-2:00pm
Cost: FREE
Harbor Compliance Partnership Manager Sharon Cody, J.D. will share insights gained from helping thousands of nonprofits navigate the maze of state fundraising registration requirements. The webinar qualifies for 1 Certified Fund Raising Executives (CFRE) International credit.
 
You’ll learn: 
  • What activities qualify as charitable solicitation
  • Where registration is required?
  • How the rules apply to online fundraising
  • How much registration costs?
  • Why compliance should be a priority
Register here.
 

Massachusetts & Rhode Island Land Conservation Conference

Friday and Saturday, March 19 & 20, 2021
Cost: $65 until March 10; $75 beginning March 11; students $15
Attendees from other states are welcome! 
Join the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition and the Rhode Island Land Trust Council for two days of virtual learning and networking! Their theme is Building a Stronger Land Movement through Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, with keynote speaker Carolyn Finney, scholar-in-residence at Middlebury College and author of Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoors. Choose from 29 sessions in 7 tracks, 2 plenaries, as well as networking options and live chats with exhibitors.
 
Learn more and registration now at https://www.accelevents.com/e/MARILandConf.
 

Climate Adaptation Fund Grant Info Session

Tuesday, March 30, 2021
2:00-3:00pm
Cost: FREE
Brought to you by The Land Trust Alliance
As land trusts across the country consider how to fund their land and climate work, the Land Trust Alliance has partnered with the Wildlife Conservation Society to share information on its Climate Adaptation Fund. The fund provides grant awards to conservation non-profits across the U.S. to catalyze innovative, science-driven projects that respond to the impacts of climate change on wildlife and people. To date, the program has awarded $19.6 million in funding to 104 adaptation projects across 42 states and territories. The focus of this year’s funding is to increase the pace and scale of learning and the implementation of actions that are making a difference for climate-impacted wildlife, ecosystems and people. 
 
The 2021 request for proposals will open in mid-March. More details will be released with the RFP and discussed on the webinar.
 
Visit LTA’s website to register.
 

New Form 8283

In December 2020, the IRS released a new version of its Form 8283, replacing an earlier version dated November 2019. The new form and instructions can be found here on the IRS website. Although it is up to landowners and their advisors to follow the rules for claiming charitable deductions, land trusts can be helpful in pointing out the existence of the new version of the form.
 
Click here to read Rob Levin’s Maine Land Conservation Law E-Bulletin, which covers the details you need to know, and other conservation law news that may be of interest. While you’re there, you can subscribe to the Maine Conservation Law bulletins and his Maine Nonprofit Law bulletins, if you’d like to receive future editions.
 

Jobs in the Conservation Sector

It’s the time of year when job postings abound, both seasonal and permanent! Here are our latest additions. Click here for full list.
Development & Communications Coordinator – Coastal Mountains Land Trust
Nature Day Camp Leaders – Harpswell Heritage Land Trust
Land Steward – Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust
Summer Stewardship Internship – Loon Echo Land Trust
President – Maine Farmland Trust
 

2021 National Coastal Resilience Fund

Pre-proposals Due: Wednesday, April 7, 2021
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has announced a request for proposals for the 2021 National Coastal Resilience Fund. This year the fund will invest approximately $34 million in grants to create, expand, and restore natural systems that can help protect communities from sea- and lake-level changes, coastal storms, inundation, and erosion.
 
Full proposals are due June 23, 2021. NFWF will administer the funding in partnership with NOAA, as authorized by the National Oceans and Coastal Security Act (Section 906(c) of Title IX of Public Law 114–113). The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation is holding a pre-proposal webinar on Wednesday, March 10. Webinar registration information and the complete request for proposals can be found here.