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Dear Friend,
As renowned thought, conservation, and business leaders join public policymakers during the annual Climate Week gathering, it is my pleasure to share updates from the Open Space Institute (OSI) about how our land protection work and leadership in the field is addressing the greatest challenge of our lifetime—climate change.
Strategic land protection and management play key roles in responding to and mitigating the impacts of climate change. The stories below highlight some of OSI’s recent efforts in harnessing the power of land to meet environmental challenges. There is also reason to celebrate: just this month, OSI’s Appalachian Landscapes Protection Fund exceeded its goal of saving 50,000 acres along the Appalachian Mountain range. In this critical region, OSI has protected forestland specifically for carbon absorption and wildlife habitat.
My deepest gratitude goes out to every partner and supporter of OSI’s climate efforts. Together, we are spurring innovation, progress, and solutions to one of the most pressing issues of our time.
Erik Kulleseid
President and CEO
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| Innovating Forest Conservation Through Technology
A major effort led by OSI is providing land trusts, policymakers, and others with updated mapping technology and data to help them strategically conserve and manage high carbon forests. Join OSI and partners for a webinar on November 14 to learn about these indispensable tools. |
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| Empowering Communities to Respond to Climate Change
The Resilient Communities program began as a joint effort between OSI and Thrive Regional Partnership to help urban and rural residents use data, planning, and natural solutions to address environmental challenges. Today, participants from the inaugural round are implementing inventive projects. “For years, our community waited for some large entity to solve our problems. Through Resilient Communities, it became clear that we can help ourselves,” said one participant. |
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| Expanding Community-Driven Climate Efforts
OSI has been awarded a grant from the Rivian Foundation for its Resilient Communities program, which empowers communities to create locally driven, land-based solutions for environmental challenges caused by climate change. Support from the Rivian Foundation will allow OSI to expand the program into new geographies throughout the eastern United States. |
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| Boosting Climate Resilience in Pennsylvania
Thanks to a recent grant from OSI’s Appalachian Land Protection Fund, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy has added nearly 1,500 forested acres to Moshannon State Forest. This acquisition bolsters climate impact in one of the highest carbon regions in the eastern United States, in addition to expanding protected landscapes needed by wildlife to migrate and thrive in a warming world. |
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| Investing in Climate-Informed Conservation
OSI and the Land Trust Alliance recently awarded more than $200,000 to support nonprofit organizations across the nation to integrate climate science into strategic land protection and stewardship plans. The awards will inform conservation of high carbon forests, creation of land-based buffers against climate change impacts, and efforts to help communities and wildlife adapt to a changing climate. |
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| Protecting New York Land for Climate and Habitat
A recent OSI acquisition of more than 200 acres in New York’s Dutchess County has permanently conserved land with a high capacity to absorb and store atmospheric carbon. The project supports a multi-state effort led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to expand the Great Thicket National Wildlife Refuge, safeguarding fragile habitat that is essential to maintaining a healthy local ecosystem and protecting threatened and vulnerable species. |
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