About Center for Natural Lands Management

Mission, History & Expertise

Our Mission

The mission of the Center for Natural Lands Management is:

To conserve native species, their habitat and functioning ecosystems in perpetuity;
To own and/or manage lands in an ecologically beneficial manner consistent with local, state and federal environmental laws and with science-based stewardship;
To promote the conservation values of such lands through education;
To promote and facilitate uses of lands by the public that preserve the conservation values; and
To cooperate with public and private entities in their efforts to protect native species and their habitats for the public benefit.

Our History

The Center for Natural Lands Management was founded in 1990 in California and incorporated as a nonprofit tax exempt organization. We protect sensitive biological resources through professional, science-based stewardship of conservation lands in perpetuity. We assure the perpetual protection of these lands by establishing stewardship endowments, a model which was unique at the time of our founding and over time has become a best practice for land conservation.

To calculate the financial resources needed to establish adequate endowments we developed a software program, Property Analysis Record (PAR), which has become the standard for land conservation. PAR has truly changed the landscape of conservation efforts and enabled groups to effectively assess the financial needs to properly and adequately care for protected lands.

Our work focuses on protecting, and restoring native and imperiled species, and their habitats throughout California and in 2011 CNLM expanded into Washington with the acquisition of the South Puget Sound Prairies Program. Our Washington conservation focus is on the Willamette Valley/Georgia Basin eco region, one of the rarest prairie ecosystems in the United States. By collaborating with nonprofit organizations, governmental agencies, corporations, and landowners we protect imperiled species and their habitats in perpetuity. Our headquarters are in Temecula, California with satellite offices and conservation activities in California and Washington.

Expertise

CNLM has staff with the legal, accounting, administrative, and biological expertise to provide full depth-of-service for natural resources stewardship, monitoring, restoration, and conservation easement compliance activities. In combined years of experience, we have in excess of 400 years in the conservation community, 225 years in science and management of natural resources, 80 years in administration and operations of nonprofit organizations, 70 years in financial and accounting management and 35 years in conservation, natural resources, and environmental law.

In addition to our President and Chief Executive Officer, our staff includes a full-time Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, Director of Administration, and Director of Conservation Science and Stewardship, all with education and experience that exceeds the requirements for these positions. Our field staff, some with more than 14 years of experience, is well trained in the principles of conservation biology and most possess postgraduate (M.S. or Ph.D.) degrees. Meet our Staff