What is North Florida Land Trust? What do we do? It is one of the questions we get asked most often. The short answer is that North Florida Land Trust is a conservation land trust: a nonprofit organization that works with willing landowners to protect natural spaces forever. We buy land or secure conservation easements so North Florida’s forests, farms, wetlands, shorelines, wildlife habitats, and open spaces remain protected for future generations.
We are dedicated to preserving and enhancing quality of life by protecting North Florida’s irreplaceable landscapes. We conserve agricultural lands, forests, coastal marshes, shorelines, and wildlife habitats because every protected acre benefits the community. Conservation helps safeguard clean air, clean water, productive soil, wildlife habitat, compatible land uses near military installations, and access to natural areas for generations to come.
As a land trust, we help shape the landscapes of our community four ways: acquisition, advocacy, stewardship, and accountability. Through acquisition, we work with willing landowners to buy land outright or secure conservation easements, which allow landowners to retain ownership while permanently limiting future development. Through advocacy, we educate the community about the benefits of land conservation. Through stewardship we care for an restore the land to its natural and native state. Through accountability, we work with partners, community leaders, elected officials, and agencies to encourage the right conservation outcomes for the right land.
Conservation takes time, trust, and negotiation. Our team identifies properties with strong conservation value, builds relationships with landowners, evaluates funding options, and works with partners to move each project from possibility to protection.
Since we began working as a land trust in 1999, NFLT has preserved more than 125,000 acres of land in Florida. Once we find willing landowners and bring a project to closing, the land may be owned by NFLT or by one of our conservation partners. When NFLT owns the property, our stewardship department takes responsibility for caring for the land over the long term.
The lands we care for range from longleaf pine sandhills to hardwood forests to coastal marshes and wetlands. The properties are extremely important ecosystems that help reduce flooding, buffer storm surge, protect clean water, and provide a home to many endangered and threatened species, including the gopher tortoise, red-cockaded woodpecker, indigo snake, West Indian manatee, and the wood stork.
To manage NFLT’s growing portfolio, currently at 16,000 acres, our team creates and implements management plans for the diverse ecosystems on our nature preserves. We restore and maintain habitats using tools such as prescribed fire, large-scale longleaf planting, and the treatment of exotic and invasive species so native plants and wildlife can thrive. We also manage the conservation easements we hold by working with landowners to determine the best ways to care for the land, and we monitor each property to ensure these parcels remain natural for generations to come.
Protecting land is only part of the story. When appropriate, we also look for ways to connect people with these conserved places so they can experience the landscapes, wildlife, and waterways that make North Florida worth protecting. Preserved lands also provide opportunities for public recreation. At Bogey Creek Preserve, visitors can enjoy hiking trails through maritime hammock and pine-oak forests, a kayak landing on Clapboard Creek, a picnic area, and interpretive signs about the surrounding ecology. Visitors can also hike a portion of the Florida Trail through Smith Lake Preserve’s scenic sandhill landscape, where interpretive signs explain local habitats and North Florida conservation efforts. On Amelia Island you can visit Fort Clinch State Park and enjoy expansive views of salt marsh and maritime hammock along Egan’s Creek in our Thornton Family Preserve right next door.
Conservation land trusts operate in all 50 states, each focused on protecting the natural landscapes, resources, and wildlife habitats that define its region. Land trusts share a common purpose: to protect important natural places before they are lost to development. These efforts have a direct impact on our quality of life. In a future post, we’ll explore more of the ways conservation directly benefits you and your community.
You can help protect Florida’s natural spaces now by becoming an NFLT member. Your support directly funds land conservation, habitat care, stewardship, and daily operations, while giving you a closer look at the conservation work happening across North Florida.
