At The Trustees, we have a long history of working with conservation partners. Today, we actively participate in many regional conservation partnerships, helping us to better coordinate our efforts with our colleagues as well as to pool resources.

In 1925, we sponsored a conference on "The Needs and Uses of Open Spaces in Massachusetts." And, some 50 years later, we helped to establish the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition to increase the individual and collective effectiveness of Massachusetts land trusts and conservation organizations. Each year, we sponsor the annual Massachusetts Land Trust Conference, a day of informative seminars and informal networking.

The Trustees has also led the way in planning, starting with a pair of conservation reports in 1892, our second year of existence. Our 1999 landscape protection plan (the seventh such report we've published), entitled Conserving our Common Wealth: A Vision for the Massachusetts Landscape, provides a broad context for our current land conservation priorities in Massachusetts:

1. protecting the best natural and cultural landscapes in each region in Massachusetts;

2. addressing the need for high-quality, well-maintained open space to serve the state's urban residences;

3. protecting "critical lands" adjacent to reservations and conservation restrictions; and

4. establishing and protecting greenways and other connections between open space properties.

Download Conserving our Common Wealth (PDF  - 8,331K*)
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Tower Hill Workshop on Conservation Priorities
On March 6 2003, eighty five land conservation professionals attended a day-long gathering at the Tower Hill Botanic Garden to assess what has been accomplished — and what remains to be done — to conserve the Massachusetts landscape. The Trustees of Reservations and the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs sponsored the event, which was co-sponsored by the American Farmland Trust, the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition, The Nature Conservancy — Massachusetts Chapter, and the Trust for Public Land.

Participants representing government conservation agencies, non-profit conservation groups and foundations, discussed how to strengthen the partnerships that have enabled the success of the Massachusetts conservation effort over the past decade. The day was punctuated by presentations on an ambitious statewide open space vision, innovative land conservation projects, and how to protect land in the current economy. A lively discussion with Steve Burrington, Deputy Chief of Commonwealth Development, provided timely insights into the new administration's plans for land conservation and Smart Growth.  In the afternoon, small groups discussed priorities according to six categories of conservation — from agriculture to water resources.

Several themes that echoed throughout the day were the need for the conservation community to present a unified, compelling vision for conservation, to develop and apply innovative conservation approaches, and to protect the critical role performed by state agencies and their dedicated staff in anchoring the land conservation work in Massachusetts.

Download a summary of the Tower Hill Workshop on Conservation Priorities (PDF  - 553K).