The Land Conservancy of New Jersey Earns National Recognition!  Cont.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission examines each applicant’s policies and programs to ensure the land trust is operating in an ethical, legal and technically sound manner, ensuring the long-term protection of land in the public interest. The accreditation seal is awarded to organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting open space lands, uphold the public trust and ensure that conservation efforts are permanent.

The seal is a mark of distinction in land conservation. “The accreditation seal lets the public know that the accredited land trust has undergone an extensive, external review of the governance and management of its organization and the systems and policies it uses to protect land.” said Commission Executive Director Tammara Van Ryn.

“The Land Conservancy of New Jersey applied for accreditation to assure our members, partners, supporters and landowners that as a nonprofit land trust organization we act in a transparent manner with the highest ethical and professional standards for all our land preservation transactions,” said Rory Corrigan, Chairman of The Land Conservancy Board of Trustees.  “We were the first land trust in New Jersey to adopt the national Standards and Practices on June 15, 2005, soon after they were announced by the Land Trust Alliance.  We are proud to be the first New Jersey land trust to receive Land Trust Accreditation.  It is a momentous day and a great achievement for The Land Conservancy.”

“Through accreditation we have become a stronger, more efficient organization, establishing a thorough procedure for record keeping and monitoring our Preserves,” explains Barbara Heskins Davis, Vice President of Programs at The Land Conservancy of New Jersey. “In order to receive accreditation we provided detailed information on the operations of The Land Conservancy and extensive documentation for the land we have preserved and now own.   Our land conservation and planning work will continue to improve and grow with Land Trust Accreditation.”

The Land Conservancy of New Jersey joins 77 other land trusts from across the country that have been awarded accreditation since the fall of 2008. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission is an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, a national conservation group based in Washington, D.C. that works to save the places people love by strengthening conservation throughout America. More information on the accreditation program is available on the Commission’s website, www.landtrustaccreditation.org.