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In 2007, Upstate Forever launched a Land Trust Outreach Campaign and we are proud to report the protection of thousands of acres as a direct result of our efforts. The Campaign’s purpose was to identify the landowners of the most important properties in our region and then educate them on the benefits of conservation agreements through mailings, conferences, personal contact, and informal social events, like barbeques and pancake breakfasts. This approach to land conservation has proven itself to be wildly successful since many of the negative misconceptions of conservation agreements can be dispelled once they are addressed by straightforward literature or a conversation with a trusted neighbor.
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| Standing-room-only crowd at the Pickens Bluegrass and BBQ event at Table Rock in 2010 |
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Oconee County attorney Shea Airey explains the legal aspects of conservation agreements to interested local landowners at an Oconee Forever event at Tokeena Angus Ranch in 2010 |
Upstate Forever’s “Greenprint” program uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software to identify the properties in our region which meet our land trust criteria, qualifying them as significant natural or cultural resources. Greenprint was critical to the launch of the Outreach Campaign, since it was through this program that the most significant properties in the Upstate were identified, allowing us to focus our limited staff, time, and resources on protecting these key tracts.
Upstate Forever is proud to have written, designed and published both a brochure on our Land Trust Program and a Landowner Testimonial. These materials are regularly updated and mailed to those individuals identified by our Greenprint program as owning significant properties in our region.
View or download a PDF of our Land Trust Brochure or Landowner Testimonial.
To access presentations, speaker bios, and other information from the conferences held on March 15 in Spartanburg and Pendleton and March 31 in Greenwood, see our website for this conference.
 For three consecutive years beginning in 2007, Upstate Forever hosted a conference called Conservation Agreements: The Voluntary Protection of Land for the Upstate professionals involved in some aspect of real estate transactions, including attorneys, accountants, financial planners, foresters, and city and regional planners. This day-long conference gave Upstate Forever the opportunity to reach those trusted professionals who are in an ideal position to advise their clients on the benefits associated with protecting their land. In total, this conference was attended by over 400 such professionals and covered a variety of topics from tax benefits to appraisals to legal case studies. Attendees were even treated to a lunch-time lecture by Dr. Patrick McMillan of SCETV’s Expeditions. Follow the link to see the material covered in the 2009 Conservation Agreements: The Voluntary Protection of Land.
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| Patrick McMillan, host of SCETV series Expeditions and Upstate Forever board member, speaks at our conference in 2009 |
One of the most successful components of our Outreach Campaign has been the establishment of grassroots county outreach committees, comprised of local leaders, landowners, and concerned citizens committed to promoting land conservation in their home counties. These committees meet regularly to plan informal social and educational opportunities for local landowners of important properties.
Anderson County Outreach Group
Oconee County Outreach Group – Oconee Forever
Pickens County Outreach Group
The success of our Land Trust Outreach Campaign has been due in large part to the generous support of The Graham Foundation, The Lyndhurst Foundation, The Hollingsworth Foundation, and The Bank of America Foundation.
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