A Message From Our Executive Director
Connecting to the Land Campaign
I’m thrilled and honored that you are interested in learning more about our Connecting to the Land Campaign. I invite you to explore this site to discover our plans for Bayshore Preserve and Inspiring Kids Preserve, how they will benefit our communities, and how you can help. I would love to chat with you and, if you’re interested, we can go for a walk at either preserve. Thank you for your interest in helping create connections to these places in our community.
Warmly,
About Capitol Land Trust
At Capitol Land Trust we conserve and forever care for the lands and waters in the South Puget Sound and Chehalis Basin watersheds. We prioritize properties with estuaries, marine shorelines, wetlands, rivers and riparian areas and associated forests, because of the crucial role they play in supporting the health and vitality of our communities. The high standard of our work has earned national accreditation by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission.
Natural open spaces and properly functioning ecosystems are essential to the exceptional quality of life we enjoy in our region. We’re working to keep it that way. Forever.
The heart of our work is about connection. We bring people together around a shared love of place. When people feel connected to the land, they protect it. And when we protect it together, both people and nature thrive.
Connecting to the Land Campaign
Making lasting connections – with nature and each other
We believe nature needs us – and we need nature. We aim to make thoughtful and accessible infrastructure improvements at our Bayshore Preserve near Shelton and our Inspiring Kids Preserve near Olympia.
These planned infrastructure improvements will give individuals of all ages and abilities the opportunity to deepen their connection to nature and each other while reaping the physical and emotional benefits of spending time at these wonderful places.
How You Can Help
Would you consider making an
impactful donation to ensure these places remain sources of connection, learning, and wonder for generations to come?
We are reaching out to you as a valued member of our community to help us cross the finish line and reach the $5,000,000 campaign goal.
Your contribution, no matter the size, will directly help us honor the rich human history and care for the diverse habitats and ecosystems at Inspiring Kids Preserve and Bayshore Preserve.
Inspiring Kids Preserve & Bayshore Preserve
Through their diversity of habitats and rich human history, these preserves offer unique ways to engage a broad range of people in our community. Located near urban centers, they provide significant educational opportunities for local residents and students.
Ongoing restoration and habitat enhancement on these preserves demonstrate the potential for revitalizing our regional ecosystems and at the same time helps create a sense of belonging to this place we call home. While hands-on education is already taking place on a small scale, our desire is to meet the larger community need by improving access for school buses and parking, improving trail systems to handle increased foot traffic, and developing new accessible trails.
Your Gift Will Help
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Expand and improve entrances for accessibility and parking
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Build a covered pavilion at Inspiring Kids Preserve
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Construct accessible trails with benches and viewing platforms
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Develop strategically placed learning stations
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Create educational kiosks and easy-to-follow directional signs
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Ensure maintenance and stewardship of these preserves
Creating a Path
to Nature
Certain places in nature have the power to take your breath away. Sometimes it’s sweeping views of snow-capped mountains over open water. Sometimes it’s a clump of mushrooms found along a trail in the fall. Or a patch of trilliums popping up unexpectedly along your path. Sometimes it’s something not seen at all, like the rich smell of damp moss and cedar, the call of a hawk, or a sudden breeze rustling through brittle winter grasses. Moments like these remind us that we are connected to all living things and the natural world in our daily lives – and how much we need them.
Access
We are initiating the Connecting to the Land Campaign to increase the number of students, families, and individuals spending time in nature and participating in hands-on outdoor education. By funding the infrastructure and program support needed to improve access to nature and environmental education for people of all ages and abilities in our communities, we can meet this objective.
Learning
Capitol Land Trust uses our preserves as outdoor classrooms to bring STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) concepts to life as well as show how habitat restoration and enhancement efforts benefit wildlife and biodiversity. Now we also look to our preserves as tools to support mental health. Today, as many people are feeling isolated, anxious, or despondent, getting outside is more important than ever, particularly for our youth who spend much of their lives online. Faced with the pressures of climate change and population growth, future generations will be confronted with the task of keeping our region a wonderful place to live for humans and wildlife alike. Our youth are the key. We must equip them with a foundational love for the land, and an understanding of the critical importance of the natural world that surrounds and sustains us.
Well-Being
Research confirms what we all know. That time in nature is good for our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. The rapidly changing nature of our world brings into sharp focus the urgency of connecting people to the land.