Texas Land Conservancy Earns National Recognition Accreditation

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, announced  that Texas Land Conservancy has been awarded accredited status. Out of over 30 land trusts in Texas, TLC is the second to earn this national recognition of excellence.

“Accredited land trusts meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever,” said Commission Executive Director Tammara Van Ryn. “The accreditation seal lets the public know that the accredited land trust has undergone an extensive, external review of the governance and management of its organization and the systems and policies it uses to protect land.”

Over the past 29 years, TLC has worked with over 100 landowners to protect over 75,000 acres of land across the state. TLC is the second oldest and third largest land trusts in Texas and is in the top 2% of land trusts nationally for the number of acres conserved.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, based in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., awards the accreditation seal to community institutions that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever.  “To those in the conservation community, Accreditation means that our organization practices a set of policies and procedures that comply with high, professional standards. To those wanting to contribute to the land conservation effort, it means that we value your land enough to attain the highest standards of care possible,” says Board Treasurer, Janell Morgan.-2/9/2011

Lori Olson Joins the Texas Land Trust Council as the new Executive Director

After an extensive search, the Texas Land Trust Council Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Lori Olson will join the staff as Executive Director beginning July 5, 2011. An amazingly qualified and accomplished candidate, Ms. Olson brings great understanding, valuable experience and a wonderful skill set to TLTC. Prior to joining the staff of the Texas Land Trust Council, Ms. Olson served as Project Manager for The Trust for Public Land, managing various conservation projects throughout Central Texas, as well as working on the project team for the Central Texas Greenprint for Growth(CTGG), a GIS-based conservation planning tool, for Travis, Hays, Bastrop, and Caldwell counties.

Ms. Olson’s previous professional experience has included working as the Executive Director of theEno River Association in Durham, North Carolina and as the Outreach and Development Director for the Oconee River Land Trust in Athens, Georgia. Ms. Olson received a Master of Science in Public Affairs and a Master of Community and Regional Planning from the University of Oregon, a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology: Ecology, Evolution & Conservation from the University of Texas at Austin.

As a native Texan and a dedicated conservationist with over a decade of service to the land trust movement, the Board of Directors is confident that Ms. Olson will lead TLTC through a period of growth and will actively advance our mission to promote and sustain the conservation efforts of land trusts across the state.