MLTN Infoline – October 6, 2026
Call for Summer 2027 Richard G. Rockefeller Conservation Intern Host Organizations
Would your organization like to help shape future conservation leaders? Consider hosting a Richard G. Rockefeller Conservation Intern next summer. Interns lend a helping hand for 9 weeks, assisting with stewardship tasks, office work, summer programs, and more. Meanwhile, you are helping the next generation develop an appreciation for the tough but rewarding work of land conservation.
The Richard G. Rockefeller Conservation Internship Program is a statewide summer internship program that places college students with land trusts across Maine for hands-on, paid conservation experiences. MCHT works with various Maine colleges to identify, and recruit interested students.
Participating organizations are required to contribute $1,000 of the $7,000 intern payment and provide housing if the intern does not live in the area of placement and requires it. Learn more.
Applications are due by November 9, 2026. A Zoom info session will be offered tomorrow at 11am where you can learn more and ask questions. Click here to register.
Is this the year you’ll host an intern?
Angela, Jeff, Donna, Megan, and Katia
New Practical Pointer Series on Trespass and Encroachment Issues from LTA
Land Trust Alliance has recently released a new three-part Practical Pointer series that offers guidance to help land trusts prevent, identify and resolve trespass and encroachment issues on conserved land. Learn how to spot potential issues before acquisition, monitor boundaries to catch problems early, document potential violations, and work toward conservation-focused resolutions.
- Part I: Early Detection and Intervention
- Part II: Boundary Monitoring for Timely Intervention
- Part III: Conservation-Positive Resolution
Land Trust Alliance membership is required.
Project WILD Curriculum Training
TOMORROW, Wednesday, October 7, 2026
9:00am-4:00pm
Camp Susan Curtis, 236 Allen Road, Stoneham
Cost: $20-$40, pay what you can, Greater Lovell Land Trust covers the rest
Calling all educators, naturalists, camp staff, and anyone who loves connecting kids with the outdoors! Join Greater Lovell Land Trust for a hands-on Project Wild curriculum training. Spend a day learning engaging, field-tested activities that use wildlife and the outdoors to teach everything from ecology and habitat to observation and critical thinking. You’ll leave with practical activities you can bring straight to your classroom, camp, nature program, or other learning environment — plus your own Project Wild curriculum guide to keep.
This training is open to anyone interested in bringing more nature-based learning into their work with young people. There are 3 scholarship spots available. Please contact lizzy.echard@gllt.org to inquire.
Registration is required. Visit gllt.org/calendar to sign up. Email lizzy.echard@gllt.org with any questions.
MLTN Programs & Funding Update: Resources to Help You Achieve Your Mission
Tuesday, October 13, 2026 via Zoom
3:30-4:45pm
Cost: FREE
Join the Maine Land Trust Network for a free webinar highlighting exciting new programs, funding opportunities, and resources designed to support Maine’s land trusts. You’ll learn about:
- Expanded Sustained Merger & Collaboration Assistance Grants
- The Organizational Assessment & Capacity Support Program
- The Transaction Assistance Grant (TAG) Program
- Maine Coast Heritage Trust’s Climate Resilience Conservation Fund
- Leadership Coaching for MLTN Member Staff and Board Members
- Land & Easement Acquisition Program from the Peter and Carmen Lucia Buck Foundation
Register today and join us.
Intermediate Individual Donor Development
Thursday, October 15, 2026 via Zoom
3:00–5:00pm
Cost: $50 for MANP members*, $70 for non-members
This event is possible thanks to a partnership between Maine Association of Nonprofits and Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.
This webinar covers steps to deepen relationships with existing donors, continue the funnel to bring new donors to the table, and start planning for long-term tools to bring in larger gifts. Join Steve Boland, Director of Next in Nonprofits, to advance your individual donor support. The session will cover:
- List segmentation – planning different tactics for new donors (intro series), small recurring donors, annual donors, and major donors
- Donor stewardship – events, visits, and non-financial “asks” to build connection
- Advanced tools to understand capacity – wealth screening tools and integrations
- Enhancing donor options for giving – DAFs, Qualified Charitable Distributions, Legacy Giving
- Building out your team – When you need the lead staff person, when you can use board and peers, and funding development staff
Participants will leave the session with items to build their more advanced annual plan for individual donors.
Visit MANP’s website to learn more and get link and code to register on partner website.
*Most MLTN members are MANP members. Contact us to check your organization’s MLTN membership status.
Stories That Move People: The Conviction Engine, Turning Compelling Narratives Into Action
Wednesday, October 21, 2026 via Zoom
4:00–5:00pm
Cost: $45 for MANP members*, $90 for non-members
This event is possible thanks to a partnership between Maine Association of Nonprofits and Utah Nonprofits Association.
You’ve written a story everyone loves, with a genuine, heart-felt appeal. But feeling is not motion. In this session you’ll learn why someone can genuinely feel your story and still not do anything about it.
The Conviction Engine is a six-stage model for how a story moves a person from information to action, built from thirty years of ghostwriting and instructional design, and grounded in the research on how the brain decides something matters. You’ll spend the hour on the two stages nonprofits stall on most. Meaning, where a program description becomes a story a donor’s brain will run, and Drive, where what they feels gets converted into what they do. You’ll leave with two diagnostics you can run on a real appeal this week, with a pen, in about ten minutes each.
Visit MANP’s website to learn more and get link and code to register on partner website.
*Most MLTN members are MANP members. Contact us to check your organization’s MLTN membership status.
Forestry Innovation Day
Friday, October 23, 2026
9:00am-2:00pm
Great Pond Mountain Wildlands, Orland
Cost: $10; Light breakfast and lunch provided
Join this in-person session to learn of innovations in forest stewardship, from management planning and operations to monitoring forest change, leveraging new technology, and inspiring the next generation of forest stewards. Participants can look forward to field sessions, live demonstrations, engaging exhibits, and local food, while connecting with fellow natural resource professionals.
For more information and to register, visit www.MaineTREE.org/events.
Plan for Anything: Budgeting, Forecasting, and Financial Resilience
Tuesday, October 27, 2026 via Zoom
9:30am–12:00pm
Cost: $55 for MANP members*, $80 for non-members
This event is possible thanks to a partnership between Maine Association of Nonprofits and Kentucky Nonprofit Alliance.
Government funding is frozen or delayed, foundation priorities are shifting, and demand for services keeps growing while budgets stay flat. Some organizations are moving through this moment with clarity while others are scrambling, and the difference is their systems. In this session, you’ll learn a practical four-part framework for building a financially resilient nonprofit, then go deep on the tools to install this in your organization. In this session, you’ll learn:
- how to turn your budget into a living forecast that works as an early warning system
- how to stress-test that forecast against the scenarios keeping you up at night
- how to see how much runway your organization truly has.
You don’t need to be a numbers person to lead your organization through uncertainty. You need visibility, a plan, and the confidence to act on what your numbers are telling you. You’ll leave with actionable templates, a scenario planning guide, and a new monthly financial routine.
Visit MANP’s website to learn more and get link and code to register on partner website.
*Most MLTN members are MANP members. Contact us to check your organization’s MLTN membership status.
ArcGIS Fundamentals for Land Trusts
Wednesday, November 4, 2026 via Zoom
2:00-3:30pm
Cost: FREE
ArcGIS helps land trusts bring together geographical, environmental, social and operational information to connect knowledge across disciplines, reveal important relationships and patterns, and turn those insights into real-world decisions. In this practical webinar, Ariana Kim and Alice Benjamin (Esri) will follow a conservation easement workflow from authoritative mapping in ArcGIS Pro to shared data and apps in ArcGIS Online, with a configurable ArcGIS Solution, offline field operations, and reporting/monitoring dashboards. Learn how desktop GIS can mature into internal collaboration and, over time, a connected system of systems that supports planning, stewardship, science, communication and collaboration.
Visit Land Trust Alliance’s website to learn more and register.
A New Era of Philanthropy with Dimple Abichandani
Thursday, November 12, 2026 via Zoom
1:00-2:30pm
Cost: Free for Maine Philanthropy Center members; $35 for non-members
As part of MPC’s 30th Anniversary Series, join us on November 12 for a special virtual conversation with Dimple Abichandani, author of A New Era of Philanthropy. Together, we’ll explore how philanthropy can evolve to meet today’s challenges by shifting power, building trust, embracing community leadership, and reimagining what it means to create lasting social change.
Open to everyone in our community, this conversation will highlight key themes from the book, including values-driven leadership, equitable grantmaking, and the importance of relationships and accountability in creating a more just philanthropic sector.
Whether you’re a funder, nonprofit leader, advisor, or simply interested in the future of giving, you’re invited to join this timely discussion.
Learn more and register here.
Latest Postings on Our Jobs Page
From land protection positions to stewardship to office support roles, our jobs page is the premier place to find the best job posting in conservation in Maine. Check out the full list on our website anytime.
District Manager – Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District
Conservation Associate – Maine Coast Heritage Trust
Community Engagement & Communications Manager – Kennebunk Land Trust
1700 HR Community Tree Steward – Maine Conservation Corps
1700 HR Environmental Steward – Maine Conservation Corps
Biologist II, Marine Unit – Maine Department of Environmental Protection
Casco Bay Estuary Partnership Resilience and Monitoring Grants
Pre-applications Due: Friday, November 6, 2026, at 5:00pm
Casco Bay Estuary Partnership (CBEP) is excited to announce the next round of Resilience and Monitoring Grants to support projects up to $25,000 that enhance climate resilience, ecosystem health, and environmental monitoring in the Casco Bay Watershed. The three grant programs are:
- Casco Bay Resilient Communities Grants: Projects that advance planning or strengthen networks to increase community resilience.
- Casco Bay Resilient Habitats Grants: Projects that advance the restoration or enhancement of aquatic habitats with the intent of building ecosystem resilience.
- Casco Bay Monitoring Infrastructure Grants: Projects that increase the capacity to collect environmental data in Casco Bay.
Application Process: Submit a Pre-application by November 6, 2026, at 5:00 PM.
Google Form Pre-application Link. Applicants will be contacted by November 9, 2026, and notified if they are being invited to submit a Full Application. Full Applications are due December 7, 2026, at 5:00 PM.
Informational Webinar: October 7, 2026, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM:
All of this information can also be found on the CBEP website. For questions or to request support, contact Natalie Bingham at natalie.bingham@maine.edu or 207-780-4306.