Imagine… you’ve landed your dream job as a land conservation manager at a land trust. You bring a deep passion for nature and years of experience as a wetland scientist. You know how to manage land to keep habitat healthy. You’re pumped about your new position!
Then reality hits.
One of your first major assignments is to create a land protection agreement that recognizes the landowner’s wishes, stands the test of time, and complies with all applicable standards and laws.
This has not been part of your professional experience. You feel the weight of this responsibility holding the landowner’s trust and maintaining the land trust’s reputation — and you know it depends on you getting every detail correct!
Thankfully, land trust staff have a place to go for expert advice when handling legal issues and creating agreements that will protect land in perpetuity — Gathering Waters’ Land Conservation Law Program.
Working with the Land Conservation Law Program equips land trust staff, boards of directors, and volunteers with the specialized knowledge and skills they need to create robust and enduring conservation agreements that align with national Land Trust Standards and Practices.
Since it began three years ago, the Law Program has grown and evolved. Instead of solely providing direct legal services on individual projects, the program has become far more impactful.
“When we first launched the program, we were in what I’d call a triage phase,” explains Law Program Director Chris Gutschenritter. “We almost exclusively handled legal work for specific land trust projects, producing solid land protection agreements. While this met immediate needs, it didn’t address the long-term goal of building organizational capacity.”
The Law Program’s evolution reflects a deeper understanding of the needs of Wisconsin land trusts and what makes conservation agreements last.
Today, land trust leaders are now more confident navigating sophisticated conservation projects with enhanced skills and expertise in title review and easement negotiation. While well-drafted legal documents are essential, truly durable conservation documentation requires knowledgeable, confident leaders who are capable of creating, monitoring, and enforcing these agreements for generations to come.
“We’re not just here for the short-term or individual deals,” notes Chris Gutschenritter. “We’re investing in growing expert capacity across the state. When land trust staff understand what to do and why they’re doing it, they create more resilient conservation outcomes.”
This approach benefits the entire land trust community.
As land trust staff become more knowledgeable, they reduce their organization’s legal costs while maintaining best practices. They’re also better equipped to engage with local attorneys, expanding the number of professionals with conservation law experience.
Even as land trusts become more capable of handling complex tasks on their own, staff will still have access to Gathering Waters’ Land Conservation Law Program when questions arise. And the Law Program will continue to monitor and communicate about legal issues at the state and federal levels to ensure land trusts can adapt to new policies and regulations.
Unlike many traditional law firms, Gathering Waters doesn’t gauge the success of this program by the number of hours we bill or the number of land deals completed. Instead, we measure our impact in the growth of land trust staff confidence, expertise, and the ability to protect land in their community for generations.
If you’d like to continue to see the Law Program evolve to serve the land trust community, consider supporting our efforts.
