Program Overview

Glynwood Center has developed the Conservation Landowners Program in order to develop incentives and strategies to encourage the owners of agricultural land to bring their land into active or increased agricultural production. This will strengthen the Hudson River Valley's regional food economy and provide other ecological, environmental, and social benefits.

Current Projects

Pilot Group
Glynwood Center is working with a targeted group of landowners in Dutchess and Columbia Counties to identify key resources and approaches to help landowners bring their agricultural land into more active production.

Land Trust Report
Land Trusts and Agricultural Land: Protecting Farmland or Farming?

DOWNLOAD MORE INFORMATION - Sample Easements and Other Supporting Documents 

PRINTED COPIES of the Land Trusts and Agricultural Land report can be ordered from Anita Barber or by calling her at (845) 265-3338.  There will be a nominal fee for shipping and handling.

In recent years, land trusts have given farmland protection more attention.  Yet, agriculture has some distinct qualities that require special considerations. Farmland is often protected as part of an effort to preserve open space and retain the bucolic viewsheds of a community, but farmland is part of a working landscape. Understanding what drives and sustains farming as an economic activity and supporting the local food economy may be critical to preserving the character of the farmland itself. 

Glynwood has been working with leading land trusts around the country to identify key challenges and innovative approaches to farmland protection.  As a result of interviews and a convening held at Glynwood Center, we have written a report geared towards land trusts currently or considering working with farmland protection. 

For more information, please contact

Jill Rubin
Program Manager
845 265-3338, ext. 106