Grant Will Help Expand Greenprint Program, Conservation Vision Programs

NEW YORK 11/16/2009: The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) today announced a grant of $600,000 over three years to The Trust for Public Land (TPL). The grant will support identified pilot projects under TPL’s Greenprint program, which already has helped local communities in more than 25 states identify, prioritize and conserve open space.

Jeff Lerner, program officer for DDCF’s Environment Program, said, “With its Greenprint program, The Trust for Public Land has established itself as a reliable partner to communities when it comes to creating a consensus plan for conserving open space. This grant will enable TPL to help selected communities go one step further, getting even more bang for their conservation buck by strategically protecting spaces for public use and enjoyment and also providing the greatest possible benefit to local wildlife.”

TPL President Will Rogers said, “We are grateful for the generosity of DDCF. This grant will help the communities we are working with to provide for multiple and maximum benefits. This grant will help communities plan for open space in a way which reflects their values.”

The new Greenprint project will draw on the conservation information already gathered by states in their Wildlife Action Plans. These plans, created at the request of Congress, were developed by state wildlife agencies, working together with local scientists, sportsmen, conservationists and other members of the public, and approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Additional background, as well as copies of each of the plans, can be found at www.wildlifeactionplans.org.

TPL’s Greenprint is an interactive modeling process that uses a geographic information system (GIS) to identify priorities for land conservation and acquisition based on community input. What makes TPL’s land prioritization process different from other modeling tools is that it combines community values with sound science. TPL works with key stakeholders that include local government staff and key partners to identify goals and values around conservation and land acquisition. The result is a set of maps that show exactly where the community chooses to invest its limited resources in order to meet its many goals, an analysis of funding and implementation strategies, and a desktop and/or web-based Greenprint model that the community can use to implement land protection and acquisition goals. For more information click here.

Oregon’s Tualatin River Watershed is one example of where TPL will leverage the DDCF grant and local philanthropic support to achieve a Greenprint. Partners will include the River Network, Smart Growth Leadership Institute, the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators and the Department of Environmental Quality, as well as The Nature Conservancy, Portland Metro and Clean Water Services, among others.

For more information about Greenprinting in your community, please contact Breece Robertson at (505) 988-5922.

TPL, established in 1972, specializes in conservation real estate to protect land for people to enjoy as parks, greenways, community gardens, playgrounds and wilderness. TPL has protected more than 2 million acres across the country, and relies on the support of individuals, foundations, and corporations.

The mission of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (www.ddcf.org) is to improve the quality of people’s lives through grants supporting the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research and the prevention of child maltreatment, and through preservation of the cultural and environmental legacy of Doris Duke’s properties.