Trail Advocacy, Conservation, and Stewardship

We advocate for the conservation and stewardship of trail lands

overview

Why Advocacy?

Don't take trails for granted. It is our duty as trail stewards to raise awareness of issues affecting our ability to connect with nature, whether that’s attending local town hall meetings or traveling to Albany, Trenton, and Washington, D.C., to discuss directly with elected officials the importance of ample access to open space. When you speak up for trails, your voice makes a difference—and as one of the 10,000-plus members of the Trail Conference, that amplified message accomplishes great things.

See News Center Advocacy News for the latest issues we are working on.

Why Conservation?

We advance the Trail Conference's mission primarily by acquiring fee simple properties and easements needed to improve, preserve and extend the Trail Conference's trail networks. Annually we prepare a conservation plan in alignment with overall strategic plan and policies. We cultivate relationships with other non-profit entities, governmental agencies and with landowners (collectively "stakeholders"), to develop and exploit opportunities for acquisition of lands, easement rights, license and right-of-way agreements or consents deemed important for the improvement of the Trail Conference's trail network.

Why Stewardship?

need to draft an overview here

The Invasives Issue

The Trail Conference's Invasives Strike Force (ISF), started in 2011, is a project is born out of the ideas, learning and experiences of a joint project between the Trail Conference and Rutgers University from 2006-2009 that was supported by the USDA (US Dept. of Agriculture) to better understand the spread of invasive plants in forested parklands.