Collaborative initiatives
- Tracy Potter-Fins and Bethany Stanbery grow fresh, high quality, certified organic, Montana Homegrown produce and flowers for their community. While Tracy focusses her efforts on the vegetable side at County Rail Farm, Bethany focusses her efforts on Field Five Flowers, but they both focus most of the love on their 7-month-old daughter, Imogen Stanbery-Fins. (USDA/FPAC photo by Preston Keres).
Explore initiatives that successfully bring together conservation and working lands professionals with community-based stakeholders.
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
An alliance of grassroots organizations that advocates for federal policy reform to advance the sustainability of agriculture, food systems, natural resources, and rural communities. NSAC’s vision of agriculture is one where a safe, nutritious, ample, and affordable food supply is produced by a legion of family farmers who make a decent living pursuing their trade, while protecting the environment, and contributing to the strength and stability of their communities.
Sustainable Forestry and African American Land Retention
SFLR exists to create a sustainable system of support for African American forest owners that significantly increases the value of African American owned forests, land retention, and asset development for Black families in the U.S. South. Since its inception, SFLR has improved forest management and forest retention by connecting African American landowners to established networks of forestry support, including federal and state government programs, businesses, and non-profit conservation, legal, community development, and Black social justice organizations.
Intertribal Timber Council
The ITC is a nonprofit, nationwide consortium of Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations, and individuals dedicated to improving the management of natural resources of importance to Native American communities. The ITC works cooperatively with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), private industry, and academia to explore issues and identify practical strategies and initiatives to promote social, economic and ecological values while protecting and utilizing forests, soil, water, and wildlife.
Rural Training and Research Center
The collective membership of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives owns the Rural Training and Research Center (RTRC), located between the towns of Epes and Gainesville in Sumter County, Alabama. The RTRC is also the base of operations for the Alabama State Association of Cooperatives (ASAC) outreach and technical assistance staff. RTRC staff work on projects with USDA, the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, and the Democratizing Rural Electric Cooperatives Campaign.
Range Rider Pilot Project
A collaborative effort between Conservation Northwest and local ranchers, the Range Rider Pilot Project seeks to demonstrate the effectiveness of non-lethal measures in deterring or reducing conflicts where wolves and livestock overlap in Washington state. We also coordinate with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), independent wolf experts, scientists and other partners to support range riding efforts.
Initiative: USFWS & Partners support Hispanic forest landowners
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service recently partnered with the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities and mano-Y-ola to complete a demographic study of Hispanic family forest landowners across the United States, including Puerto Rico. “The Hispanic population is one of the largest and fastest growing in the United States, yet very little is known about their relationship to land ownership,” said Nolo Martinez, co-president of man-Y-ola. Mano-Y-ola, a North Carolina-based consulting firm that focuses on minority and immigrant farmer communities, examined forest landowner demographic trends and the Hispanic presence in North America...
