SEMI Wild - Integrating Community Based Conservation and Large Landscape Conservation

The National Park Service – Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program (RTCA) is providing assistance to partners in 34 LLC projects across the county.  These efforts include regional and statewide strategic conservation planning; green infrastructure planning, protecting wildlife corridors, protection and restoration of natural lands and waters; recreation planning across networks of public lands; and implementation of local projects that further large landscape conservation goals.  

The Panel Session will illustrate three Urban and Regional Conservation Initiatives from across the country: SEMI Wild,  a consortium of nine land trusts working to protect wild places in Detroit and Southeast Michigan region (7 counties); The Intertwine, a regional conservation strategy for Portland/Vancouver Region (9 counties) focusing on the urban and urban interface;  Neighborspace of Baltimore County, a strategic conservation plan within the urban growth area of Baltimore County and Chesapeake Bay Watershed.  All three initiatives are multi-jurisdictional, involving participation of many governing entities; multi-objective, addressing a range of goals; and multi-stakeholder, requiring partnerships among public and private organizations.

Each project will showcase the collaboration, community engagement process for setting conservation priorities, methods for resource assessment and delineation of conservation lands, land protection/restoration mechanisms, environmental and social issues associated with working in urban areas, and provide lessons learned for others undertaking similar projects.  The panel will include the Executive Directors from partner organizations - The Intertwine Alliance, The Heart of the Lakes Center for Land Conservation Policy, and Neighborspace of Baltimore County along with RTCA project planners from the Pacific Northwest, Midwest and East Coast.