Recently, completing our 60th conservation project raised cheers from NEWLT’s Land Guardian as we celebrated this important milestone together.

Because of your support, Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust has now preserved more than 6,300 acres of land, including 1,073 acres of wetland. These lands clean our water and ameliorate local climate effects by removing CO2 from the air. “It’s fulfilling to see how far the land trust has come in recent years. The board has really taken this work to heart and the result is wonderful: conservation projects that will last lifetimes.” said Todd Needham, NEWLT’s longtime Board Member and Land Acquisition Committee Chair.

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This doesn’t mean we’re slowing down, though. Our Director of Conservation Julie Hawkins-Tyriver says the year is going to be a busy one. Not only are we working toward re-accreditation, but we’ve just begun 3 new conservation projects. The latest project, Sisters Woods Conservancy, will protect a world-renowned woodland that has been revered and protected for 150 years for its spiritual significance.

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Another recent project aims to preserve land nearer to the urban corridor, expanding access to natural spaces in an urban environment.  Many of our supporters have been keen to see the new preserve that has a special place in the minds of those who call the Fox Valley home.

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Executive Director Deborah Nett is particularly proud of this new site in Outagamie County. “The Land Trust serves a 12-county territory, with preserves in every county but the two closest to our home office. There’s just not that much natural land left in Outagamie and Calumet Counties, so it is hard to find land worthy of permanent conservation status. But, after 26 years of waiting, we’ve finally found a project that we can be proud of.”  

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With luck, we’ll soon welcome a new conservancy to the fold and can proudly point to success in our own backyard.