idealist.org

The Columbia Land Conservancy, Inc. is a private non-profit land trust dedicated to protecting farmland, wildlife habitat and rural open space in the Columbia County region of New York State. The Conservancy places special emphasis on preserving Columbia County's unique regional significance as the crossroads of the Hudson River Valley, the Taconic and Berkshire Mountain ranges, and the Capital District. We encourage environmental sensitivity and enlightened planning to guide the region's growth, and are strongly committed to the region's agricultural economy. The Conservancy reaches these goals by accepting conservation easements, acquiring land, providing technical land planning and conservation assistance to landowners, and working with government officials and the public in support of planning and zoning practices that protect the region's irreplaceable open space resources. The Conservancy also provides environmental education programming with the goal of instilling a greater appreciation for, and understanding of, the natural world and natural sciences, and the rural landscape.