By:
Will Rogers, President
and
Christopher Glenn Sawyer, Chair, Board of Directors

Photo by: Mush Emmons

It is no secret that the strong national economy is fueling unprecedented growth in land development. Sprawl--and the damages it can cause--has become a significant problem throughout the nation, the subject of hundreds of news articles. Voters are expressing their concern by passing funding measures to protect open space before it disappears under subdivisions and strip malls. Governors from Georgia to Utah have made smarter growth a centerpiece of legislative and conservation efforts. And Congress is considering one of the most important--and most needed--federal conservation measures of the last two decades, the Conservation and Reinvestment Act, which would dedicate approximately $3 billion every year for protecting important land and water and improving urban parks.

As you will see in this Annual Report issue of Land & People, the national surge in development is prompting a corresponding demand for TPL's services. Since its inception, TPL and its loyal supporters have helped communities create parks and protect open space as a way of guiding growth. With a staff now topping 300, in 33 offices around the nation, and an ever more skilled and dedicated core of friends, supporters, and partners we're busier than we have ever been before. TPL completed 150 projects last year, protecting land valued at $240 million.

The challenges of growth bring new opportunities for TPL's brand of land-for-people conservation:
• In cities TPL is helping create parks as the centerpieces of vibrant, livable, pedestrian- friendly communities.
• In urban neighborhoods blighted by vacant lots, TPL is helping transform "brownfields" to much-needed parks and playgrounds.
• Where growth threatens water quality, TPL is helping communities protect watersheds, providing places for recreation and water quality protection.
• In fast-developing regions TPL is helping create greenway networks and preserve surrounding wildlands and wildlife habitat in advance of development.

We are working hard to meet community demand throughout America, but it is our friends and partners--people like you--that make our work sustainable. Please know how much all of us at TPL appreciate and thank you for your participation and assistance.

There is no sign that growth or the challenges it brings will lessen anytime soon. TPL's response--helping communities guide growth and conserving those close-to-home places where people can feel the touch of nature and community--will demand all the energy and creativity that we and our partners have to offer. All of us look forward to working with you in the year ahead.