Success Stories
The land trust community has been transformed through the accreditation process. While the millions of acres protected by accredited land trusts are impressive, the people and the individual stories behind those numbers are even more so. We're spotlighting these accreditation stories by talking to land trusts who have been through the process and made the commitment to conservation excellence.
Accredited Land Trust Voices: Harford Land Trust
 We spoke with the team at Harford Land Trust, located in Bel Air, Maryland, to get their perspective and experience about preparing for and navigating the first-time accreditation process.
For 30 years Harford Land Trust has protected lands in Maryland's Harford County. They were started by a group local residents who were passionate about preserving the natural systems and working lands of their community. For most of HLT's history, they have only had one staff member, their Executive Director, and today they are still a small-staffed land trust with three paid staff. Small but mighty, Harford Land Trust has helped protect more than 12,000 acres of farms, forests, and community parks, holds conservation easements on 1,400 acres of land and owns 340 acres dedicated to public enjoyment.
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Accredited Land Trust Voices: Lowcountry Land Trust
 We spoke with the team at Lowcountry Land Trust, located in Charleston, South Carolina, to get their perspective and experience on preparing for and navigating the accreditation renewal process.
Lowcountry Land Trust, founded in 1986, partners with landowners and local stakeholders to permanently protect and nurture the land throughout coastal South Carolina. They have grown from a small community effort to an institution that protects more than 150,000 acres of coastal land and water. Lowcountry Land Trust's mission is to protect land and water forever, nurture relationships between people and place, and connect conservation to community. They were awarded their second renewal of accreditation in 2024.
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Accredited Land Trust Voices: Platte Land Trust
 Planning and preparing for first-time accreditation can seem like a daunting task at the outset. For Platte Land Trust, an all-volunteer land trust located in Kansas City, Missouri, their decision to apply was years in the making.
We caught up with the volunteers of Platte Land Trust to talk about their experience applying for first-time accreditation.
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Accredited Land Trust Voices: Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust
 As one of the only regional land trusts in northeast Wisconsin, Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust works to protect natural lands over a 12-county territory. This area encompasses a majority of the Green Bay watershed, one of the largest freshwater estuaries in the world and the source of one-third of the surface water flowing into Lake Michigan. Since 1996 they have preserved more than 6,000 acres which includes forests, wetlands and miles of shoreline.
We caught up with the staff of Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust to talk about how being accredited has impacted their organization.
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Accredited Land Trust Voices: Coastal Prairie Conservancy
 The Coastal Prairie Conservancy staff during the renewal process, Indiangrass Preserve, Waller, TexasYou may know Coastal Prairie Conservancy, CPC, by their former name, Katy Prairie Conservancy, but their rebranding more accurately captures their expanded mission of land conservation in the Western Gulf region of Texas. While the Katy Prairie will always remain a critical area for conservation, CPC protects lands that stretch from Katy to the Gulf Coast. Coastal prairie lands are critical for the health of costal lands. Prairie grasses absorb and hold back floodwaters, and the wetlands are a diverse ecosystem.
We caught up with Coastal Prairie Conservancy to find out how becoming an accredited land trust has helped them grow and expand their mission.
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