The Woodbury-based Long Island Conservancy has been certified as an official land trust and rebranded as the Long Island Conservation Alliance.
As a land trust, the organization said it has an expanded capacity to protect land across Long Island from developers and will work to bolster efforts to conserve open space as well as broaden partnerships with communities in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens and Brooklyn counties.
“Becoming a land trust marks a major step forward in our efforts to protect our natural ecosystems, and the new name reflects our expanded mission of protecting critical habitats, restoring biodiversity and building a resilient Long Island through shared action,” Devon Giordano, executive director of the Long Island Conservation Alliance, said in a news release about the organization’s new certification and rebranding.
“As a land trust, we are taking a regional leadership role with a particular focus on uniting partners, communities and local leaders to safeguard the natural systems that define our future. We have teams to do the work on the ground every day to turn visions into reality,” Giordano said.
The Long Island Conservation Alliance can now accept conservation easements, allowing it to permanently protect properties from development to ensure that the properties are ecologically healthy and continue to serve communities in the short- and long-term. The organization said its approach focuses on conserving and restoring a wide range of sites — including smaller parcels and ecologically degraded land — while helping community partners preserve properties that may otherwise lack the resources or expertise needed for long-term stewardship.
“Land conservation and restoration is labor-intensive, time-intensive and resource-intensive, but that is exactly why this work matters,” Giordano said.
“The Long Island Conservation Alliance is an environmental partner, and we strive to use our on-the-ground resources to align with our partners’ goals,” Giordano added.
“We have a collective commitment to the island we all call home, and we are proud to work alongside other organizations and agencies who share our mission,” Giordano said. “Together, we are making meaningful progress toward protecting Long Island.”
In addition to conservation easements, ecological restoration and community partnerships, the Long Island Conservation Alliance, as a land trust, will use land acquisition to permanently protect and restore landscapes across the region.
Adina Genn
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