March 2025

Dear Network Friends,

Last week was the first day of spring. This has always been one of my favorite times of year, when we can leave the long nights of winter behind us and look forward to brighter days and blooming flowers. However, this spring is feeling less bright for many of us and is bringing challenges with it that few of us could have fully predicted. Recent federal actions have created much uncertainty, disruption, and frustration for conservation & stewardship practitioners and others here in the US. And the impacts of these federal actions are also rippling across the continent. 

Despite this fear and uncertainty, I am heartened by the resilience and strength that I have heard in conversations with colleagues across the NLC. I am reminded that embedded in the idea of a network is the fostering of connections and the building of trust. Now more than ever, we need to keep building that foundation of community. Despite the chaos, we can find strength together – in the words of the incomparable Dolly Parton, "Storms make trees take deeper roots."

This May, the Salazar Center will be bringing people from across North America at our sixth International Symposium on Conservation Impact to share insights, ideas, and expertise on how we can continue to reach our biodiversity goals—and to draw on lessons learned from experts who've dealt with challenging moments before, so that we may equip ourselves with resources and approaches to getting through this together. Our aim is to foster that sense of community as we chart a course forward through the current uncertainty and help consolidate our collective strengths so we can keep building a better future for people and nature. 

We would love to have you join us in-person in Vancouver this May. We know that many of our partners in the US have been experiencing financial difficulties as a result of federal actions, so we will also be adding a livestream option this week for the event. In the meantime, we hope you continue to find the broader NLC community to be a source of support, inspiration, and resilience—Enjoy this month’s Bulletin, and stay in touch!

Leading Through Uncertainty

2025 Catalyst Fund RFP

Perspectives: Insights and reflections from the Agave Restoration Initiative

Jen Kovecses

Member, NLC Coordinating Committee

Assistant Director Programs, Salazar Center for North American Conservation

For many of us working to sustain environmental and community well-being, we are finding, in our professional (and personal) lives, moments of searching to answer the question, ‘What can and should we do in this time of threat to our organizations and collaborations?’

How can we adapt and pivot, so that we can continue to advance actions that are so needed for our lands, waters, and communities? In a powerful blogpost, Dianne Russell at the Institution for Conservation Leadership reflects on Leading in Uncertain Times, inviting us to explore adaptive leadership strategies and offering a concise and thoughtful list of approaches to create an environment in which teams, entities, and networks can nimbly respond to complex issues and change. As Dianne writes, “In this climate, your leadership carries special weight and responsibility. When the ground shifts below your feet, how do you lead? How do you center your mission for the long term while also focusing on the immediate work in front of you?” We think these are critical questions, not just for those of us in formal leadership positions–but for all of us, from an informal leadership perspective too.    

Rising to the top of the list is the recommendation to “scout and scan your environment” in order to increase your knowledge, and therefore, your power. Yet with the abundance of information released daily, it becomes crucial to rely on outlets organizing and disseminating resources–the National Council of Nonprofits continues to track the impacts of executive orders on nonprofits generally, while elsewhere the Land Trust Alliance is tracking how the unprecedented number of executive orders and other administrative actions are impacting land trusts and other conservation & stewardship efforts.  

Dianne’s blogpost also underscores that this is a time to experiment with new strategies. In this vein, a new report from the Mighty Arrow Foundation felt especially timely. After a year of deep listening with its grantee network, the Foundation has released the Mighty Partner Project Report, striving to answer the question, ‘How do we, as funders, take better care of the people doing this work?’ The report highlights the opportunity for “rethinking how nonprofits and funding are structured, looking for creative ways to shift to a longer-term mentality so organizations can continue work strategically—and for the long haul.” In this moment of turmoil and disruption, what is becoming increasingly clear is that networking and building and fostering relationships is no longer a suggested good practice—but critical in maintaining stability and sustaining progress towards a better future for our landscapes and our communities. 

Earlier this month, we released a new Request for Proposals for the 2025 funding round of the Catalyst Fund. With this its seventh grant cycle, the Catalyst Fund strives to accelerate the pace and practice of landscape conservation and stewardship across the United States by making strategic investments in strengthening the collaborative capacity of place-based, community-grounded Landscape Partnerships. The Fund couples financial support through a competitive grant program with capacity-building support through in-depth Peer Learning for funded Partnerships. A portion of the Fund is reserved specifically to advance Indigenous landscape conservation and stewardship priorities.

Special Note: This year we are partnering with the Land Trust Alliance’s Land and Climate Grant Program to pilot an opportunity for qualifying Landscape Partnerships to request additional support–on top of what they request from the Catalyst Fund–to undertake climate-informed conservation planning. More information on this pilot opportunity is captured in the Catalyst Fund RFP and Applicant Guidance Document. A representative from the Land and Climate Grant Program will also join the informational webinar. 

Visit the Catalyst Fund page of our website for more information on the how to apply. Proposal submissions are due by Friday, May 16 and we anticipate announcing grant awards in late August 2025.

Insights and reflections from the Agave Restoration Initiative, a bi-national landscape-scale initiative to save biodiversity and support rural livelihoods

Working at the landscape scale often brings into focus the complex, interconnected relationships that define the ecosystems in which we live. In this month’s Perspectives piece, Dr. Kristen Lear of Bat Conservation International highlights the mutual relationship between migratory, nectar-feeding bats and agave plants, and the keystone nature of this relationship in Mexico and the American Southwest. Dr. Lear shares the story of the emergence of the Agave Restoration Initiative, a bi-national collaborative landscape-scale biodiversity restoration effort in this important region. And part of what is so compelling about the Initiative's model is that it recognizes that the interconnections extend beyond just the biophysical: Our socio-cultural systems are inextricably linked to our biophysical systems in so many ways. As Dr. Lear highlights, the Initiative’s biodiversity efforts are framed in such a way to support rural livelihoods and well-being–not as a separate, ancillary benefit, but as an integral, foundational strategy for advancing the biodiversity outcomes. Stepping back and reflecting on what she and partners have learned over the last seven years, Dr. Lear ends the piece by identifying factors that have helped the Agave Restoration Initiative find success–and offers key take-aways that may be broadly relevant to collaborative landscape conservation, stewardship, and restoration efforts irrespective of geography.

We hope you enjoy reading the piece–and we are excited to have Dr. Lear and colleagues from the Agave Restoration Initiative joining us for a Landscape Conservation in Action webinar later this spring. Register here to join the conversation on Tuesday, April 29th, to learn more about the Initiative’s efforts to build sustainable, equitable futures for the biophysical and sociocultural systems of the trans-boundary region of Mexico and the American Southwest.

Photo: Horizonline Pictures, Bat Conservation International

Federal Workers and Contractors Oral History

One of the distressing aspects of the abrupt and ongoing disruption at the Federal level is the seeming lack of understanding of and complete disregard for the role and responsibility of agency personnel, and the unique value and manifold contributions that such individuals offer in support of our communities. The Oral History Association has launched an initiative to document the experiences of federal workers and federal contractors affected by the current changes underway–as a mechanism to offer insight into the lives and contributions of our nation’s federal workers.

The Land Trust Alliance and partners Native Land Conservancy and Tahoma Peak Solutions release new publication, ‘Partnership for Land Rematriation: Legal Pathways for Supporting Indigenous Land Access and Return,’ which explores a spectrum of approaches to Indigenous land access and return. 

Read more

The Western Landowners Alliance releases ‘Building Trust: A guide for agencies working with producers to reduce wildlife conflicts,’ a publication that synthesizes recommendations to help agencies and other groups to center trust and conflict resolution when working with producers for effective resource management. 

Read the guide

The 2025 Conservation in the West Poll, an annual survey of residents in eight Western states, highlights continued strong support for climate action and conservation activities. 

See a summary from High Country News and explore the key findings report here

Summary report distills insights from a collaborative governance assessment of the Forest Service’s Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program and offers recommendations for improving the collaborative process for achieving ecological and sociocultural outcomes in landscapes. 

Read the report

Conservation Corridor highlights a new analysis of the value of wildlife crossings—known for their connectivity and biodiversity benefits—also serve as a tool to mitigate climate change.

Read more

First Came Collaboration: Short film from the Western Landowners Alliance, looks at how the Shoesole Resource Management Group—a conservation collaborative formed over thirty years ago to advance holistic livestock grazing management and riparian restoration—celebrates land, streams, and wildlife habitats healthier than they could have ever imagined. 

Watch the film

The SLOSS debate: Article in Anthropocene highlights a new paper that suggests a resolution to the half-century old debate about how to conserve biodiversity in natural areas, revealing that it’s better to have one large contiguous forest than many smaller fragments. 

Read the paper

What is a facilitator and what do they do? The Environmental Dispute Resolution from University of Utah shares a blogpost on facilitation and the value of small-f and Big-F facilitators.  

Read the blog

Essay in Western Confluence offers reflections on the early approaches of protected areas nature conservation—or the 'Yellowstone model'—and the evolution of newer models that work to fully attend to the needs of natural and human communities in a more interconnected manner. 

Read the essay

Conservation Corridor highlights new research that highlights how efforts to protect 30% of the land and water by 2030 cannot be accomplished solely through conservation, but necessarily will require accelerated restoration efforts as well. 

Read more

“There isn’t any one right kind of forestry:” Commentary in From the Ground Up, highlights the importance of collaborative, multiple-objective approaches to forestry–and conservation more broadly–and suggests an ‘ecological forestry’ framework may be helpful in moving in this direction.  

Read the piece

From Mountain Journal comes the article ‘Sowing Uncertainty from DC Beltway to Yellowstone Gateways,’ discussing how the recent federal budget purge is impacting regional landscape conservation and stewardship.

Read the article

What environmental psychology research suggests about communicating the climate crisis: Anthropocene article weighs competing arguments on the effectiveness of changing people's views on climate—and a second article highlights research that suggests people do listen to and follow expert climate advice. 

Read the articles here and here. 

The essay ‘Pondering a Conservation Ethic’ in From the Ground Up provides a transcript of inspiring remarks provided to conservation practitioners in Vermont on the values of wild nature and managed forests. 

Read the essay

An article from Mountain Journal details how the National Environmental Policy Act is under attack.

Read the article

‘The Fault of Time:’ Emergence Magazine article offers reflections on the impermanence of landscape and how to embrace and love our shifting lands.  

Read the story

Upcoming Conferences & Events

* * * *

April 11, 2025 — 2025 Collaboration Symposium: Natural Resource Leadership in Complex and Uncertain Times

Jackson, WY

April 21-25, 2025 — Appalachian Trail Landscape Partnership Annual Meeting

Roanoke, VA

April 22-25, 2025 — Canadian Ecological Connectivity Conference 

Banff, Alberta 

May 5-7, 2025 — The 6th Salazar Center International Symposium on Conservation Impact

Vancouver, British Columbia

May 8-10, 2025 - The 2025 New Horizons in Conservation Convening

New Haven, CT

May 12-15, 2025 — Native American Fish and Wildlife Society Annual Conference

Riverton, WY

June 2-6, 2025 — Conservation Finance Boot Camp

New Haven, CT

June 23-25, 2025 - Western Governor’s Association Annual Meeting

Santa Fe, NM

July 15-18, 2025 — 9th American Forest Congress

Washington, D.C.

September 3-6, 2025 — LTA Rally: The National Land Conservation Conference

Cleveland, OH

October 1-2, 2025 — Managing Wildlife in Large Landscapes: Reciprocal learnings for the world's most iconic ecosystems

Jackson Hole, WY

October 15-17, 2025 — National Habitat Conservation Plan Coalition Annual Meeting

Shepherdstown, WV

October 20-23, 2025 — George Wright Society ParkForum 2025: A Conservation Solutions Workshop

Missoula, MT

Session proposals for the ParkForum are now being accepting through April 1, 2025--see the call for proposals for more information.

Landscape Conservation Job Board

* * * *

Managing Director, Heart of the Rockies Initiative

Learn More

Operations Manager, Center for Large Landscape Conservation

Learn More

New Mexico Resource Coordinator, Western Landowners Alliance

Learn More

Conservation Finance Director, Western Landowners Alliance

Learn More

Program Manager, Willamette Valley Fire Collaborative

Learn more

Land of the First Light Fellowship, Native Land Conservancy

Learn More

Vice President of Conservation Programs, Northeast Wilderness Trust

Learn More

Director of Forest Programs, Northern Forest Center

Learn More

Vermont/New Hampshire Director, Northern Forest Center

Learn More

This section of the Landscape Conservation Bulletin is intended to be a space to share job postings that will be specifically relevant to landscape conservation practitioners. We welcome submissions: if your organization would like to widely distribute a posting please be in touch.

Webinars & Additional Resources

Grasslands and Carbon Finance- Lessons from Southeast Montana

Conservation Finance Network webinar

April 3, 2025

Navigating Change through Uncertain Times

A Collective Impact Forum "office hours"

April 8, 2025 

The Trump Presidency and Environment

A Wallace Stegner Center "greenbag" lunch panel discussion

April 14, 2025

Legal and Communication Perspectives on Equity Initiatives

A Green 2.0 webinar

April 22, 2025

Network Leadership Series

A virtual leadership training from Circle Generation

April 15-June 3, 2025

Insights and reflections from Bat Conservation International’s Agave Restoration Initiative, a bi-national landscape-scale initiative to save biodiversity and support rural livelihoods

NLC Landscape Conservation in Action webinar

April 29, 2025

Building Blocks of Trust Training Series

A self-directed training series from the River Network and Water Now Alliance

Defending and Advancing Democracy and Equity in Collective Impact Work

A Collective Impact Forum podcast recording

Why Community Listening is Critical to Achieve Effective Philanthropy

A Collective Impact Forum podcast recording

Collective Impact Forum Resource Library

A central library of resources, including articles, podcasts, reports, tools, videos, and webinars from the Collective Impact Forum

NatureConnect 

NatureConnect is a diverse suite of services, tools, and workshops offered by the Center for Large Landscape Conservation to help partners achieve connectivity and landscape conservation goals. 

Connectivity 101

A free, online course developed by the Center for Large Landscape Conservation and partners in the Wildlife Connect Initiative with technical support from UNDP Learning for Nature. Conservation professionals and other interested parties can now register for the course to learn about conserving and restoring ecological connectivity to support a healthy planet. 

Conservation Finance Boot Camp Short Course

Following cancellation of the 2020 Conservation Finance Boot Camp, the Conservation Finance Network compiled a 4-part video short course, which is available via the above link.



America Adapts: The Climate Change Podcast

A weekly podcast that explores the challenges presented by adapting to climate change and the approaches the field's best minds believe are already working.

The Green Mind

A podcast that explores the intersection of social and environmental advocacy, and seeks to uncover the actions people are taking around the world to showcase the symbiotic, yet sometimes tumultuous, relationship between people and nature.

Recordings of past webinars of the Connected Conservation webinar series are available on the National Park Service Connected Conservation website.

Recordings of past NLC Landscape Conservation in Action webinars are available on the Network's Landscape Conservation in Action Webinar Series page.