April 20-21, 2021 - Land Conservation Track
May 11, 2021 - Greenways & Trails Track

Proposals Due:  Friday, January 15, 2021

Virginia’s United Land Trusts is pleased to invite you to be a part of the 2021 Virginia Land Conservation and Greenways Conference.  The principal conference will be virtual, utilizing the Zoom platform.  However, we also invite submission for regional field trips, to occur outside the virtual tracks.  These outings will offer an opportunity to showcase a project to a size limited, in-person group.  Logistics will be coordinated directly with VaULT and host organization.

2021 Conference Theme: Resilience

As we look toward 2021, with 2020 at our back, we recognize now more than ever the need for resilience in our work.  The word resilience evokes the fundamental principles of land conservation work, and the ecosystem services and community connections provided by protected landscapes.  Climate change demands with ever increasing urgency that we solve big problems where land and water meet, where communities access outdoor spaces, and where energy production and land use interests compete.  Land is foundational to it all and the solutions of the future are built here.  But resilience also relates to our businesses and how we continue to operate in a pandemic world.  Resilience calls us to be better than before in broadening the conversations and serving communities of color and other disadvantaged populations.  Resilience recognizes the toll 2020 took on the individual, and the need to do what is necessary to shore up our own resources to carry forward in this important work.

Here are some suggested topic areas:
--Rising to the challenge of climate change; how land conservation is a key part of the solution.
--Highlighting new organizational structures, including agrarian trusts and community land trusts.
--Understanding the history of land ownership in Virginia.
--Showcasing the work of the next generation (Gen Y and Z).
--Building sustainable regional trail systems to increase accessibility to parks, schools, and workplaces.
--Establishing collaborations to build parks and trails in historically underserved communities.
--Creating corridors for people, water quality, and wildlife to flourish.
**We always welcome technical sessions including financing and completing complicated conservation and greenway projects and advanced legal topics in the area of land use, conservation, landowner liability, and tax incentives.

Questions about the process? Please contact Sarah Richardson, (804) 932-3262 or Natasha Skelton, (540) 271-0746.