Mission & Philosophy

Mount Grace nurtures the interdependence of people and the land by developing community-based solutions to climate change and loss of habitat and biodiversity. To achieve this goal, conservation must engage with all who depend on forests, farms, and access to nature for livelihoods, peace of mind, and health. Sustainable conservation works to rebuild climate-resilient landscapes that provide clean are and water, healthy food, and biodiversity. The strategies in this plan advance this ethic of sustainability and reflect four themes raised by stakeholders. 

Protecting and stewarding the land 

Our region is blessed with unfragmented landscapes. These critical landscapes require strategic land protection to sustain the resilient corridors that can buffer our ecosystem from escalating climate change impacts and threats to biodiversity. Our landscape-scale conservation and stewardship are informed by science, Indigenous knowledge, and the needs of the community. 

Supporting working landscapes

Working farms and forests are central to the survival of open land and our rural economy. Our programs foster robust food systems to ensure local food remains available for all and protected farmland stays in production despite increasing threats from development. Our conservation work supports both sustainably managed woodlands and forests where natural processes prevail. 

Sharing knowledge

The impacts of our work and magnified by collaboration and sharing knowledge. Through our innovative stewardship we demonstrate the value of working lands and traditional ecological knowledge and facilitate our partners’ efforts to engage in thoughtful land management. We are nationally recognized for supporting our partners with knowledge rooted in science and rich programmatic experience. 

Sharing the land

The natural world should be both accessible and welcoming for all people. By centering land justice in our work, we further our commitment to reconnect more people to the land. As we continue to strengthen relationships with traditional partners, our new collaborations with people of color and Indigenous partners provide opportunities to expand past land trust practices to address unmet community needs in both rural and urban areas.