Embracing Growth: A Year of Reflection and Planning for Future Success

From Kate Stookey, Maine Coast Heritage Trust President and CEO

“This year, we’ve carved out time to step back, learn, reflect, and start planning for the years ahead.”

I hope you enjoy this collection of stories and updates about our work, the places we have the honor to conserve, and the partners and supporters who make it all possible.

This longer, more in-depth publication includes stories about our collaborative efforts to protect connected forests and wildlife habitat, recent projects to create permanent public coastal access for clammers and diggers, and our collaboration with partners to advance conservation while addressing issues of concern to communities up and down the coast.

Not surprisingly, many themes in this annual  publication — namely, connection, access, and partnership—are also surfacing as clear priorities in the conversations we’re having as we develop a new strategic plan. This year, we’ve carved out time to step back, learn, reflect, and start planning for the years ahead. We’re asking ourselves questions like:

What are the challenges facing communities in Maine? How can we most effectively contribute to a healthy and vibrant Maine through our conservation efforts?

Grounded in research and ongoing input from people inside and outside the organization, goals are emerging around building climate change resilience, deepening connections with people we haven’t reached yet, and leveraging Maine’s robust network of land trusts and other partners to accelerate the pace and scale of conservation. We’re having exciting and important conversations about what it will take to ready our organization to make the greatest impact possible in the years to come.

The stakes are high, the opportunities abound, and I look forward to working with you to build upon the tremendous impact we have achieved together over the past half-century. If you haven’t already signed up to receive email updates from us, you can do so at mcht.org/get-updates. We’ll keep you up to date on MCHT’s strategic plan, events, conservation news and stories, and more.

As always, I’d love to hear from you; please share your thoughts and ideas with me at .

Thank you for giving to the lands and waters that give so much to us. 

With gratitude,
Kate Stookey
MCHT President and CEO