Little Forks Conservancy Achieves National Accreditation

August 12, 2010

By Heart of the Lakes

Heart of the Lakes member, The Little Forks Conservancy, a nonprofit land conservancy based in Midland, is Michigan’s newest accredited land conservancy. The August 4th announcement from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission puts Little Forks in a distinguished group of 105 land conservancies out of more than 1,600 across the country that have achieved national accreditation. Little Forks, which works with private landowners to permanently protect lands with important natural and cultural resources in the Tittabawassee River watershed, joins the ranks of five Michigan conservancies that are now accredited out of the over 30 currently active in the state.

“We applaud Little Forks on this monumental accomplishment,” said Rachel Kuntzsch, Executive Director of Heart of the Lakes Center for Land Conservation Policy, a statewide organization that strengthens the collective efforts of organizations dedicated to the conservation of Michigan’s environmentally and economically significant lands. “Accreditation means that Little Forks meets national standards of excellence and upholds the public trust with the organizational strength and ability needed to ensure the permanence of the important lands they work to protect.”

Little Forks Conservancy has helped landowners protect over 2,100 acres through voluntary, permanent legal agreements known as conservation easements. The Conservancy also holds more than 500 acres of land as nature preserves. The group is currently raising funds to protect 419 acres, called Riverview Natural Area, along nearly two miles of the Tittabawassee River.

Accreditation through the Land Trust Accreditation Commission is a rigorous process that assesses an organization’s governance, internal management, and the systems and policies it uses to permanently protect land. “It strengthens Michigan land conservancies for the challenging work of protecting the natural, scenic, forestry and agricultural lands that drive Michigan’s economy and contribute to the outstanding quality of life we all enjoy,” Kuntzsch added.

To aide in their quest for accreditation, Little Forks leveraged the Advancing Conservancy Excellence (ACE) program, a partnership between Heart of the Lakes and the Land Trust Allianceto provide Michigan conservancies with the training, knowledge, and capacity required to be well-positioned for accreditation and sustainable for future generations. The program is supported by the Kresge, Carls, Frey, Wege and C.S. Mott Foundations.

“Support from the ACE program was an invaluable boost to ready ourselves for the accreditation process and prepare the application. With an ACE grant and other support services such as training and mentoring, we were in position to apply much sooner than planned,” said Doug

Koop, Executive Director of the Little Forks Conservancy. “ACE is helping Michigan step out in front of other states with the number of accredited land conservancies.” Other accredited land conservancies in Michigan are Chikaming Open Lands (Lakeside), Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy (Traverse City), Leelanau Conservancy (Leland), and Legacy Land Conservancy (Ann Arbor).

“The board, supporters, and staff of the Little Forks Conservancy are to be congratulated for this incredible achievement,” added Kuntzsch. “Little Forks is doing outstanding conservation work in their service area and accreditation is a powerful testament to their commitment to excellence and protection of important lands.”