Climate change isn’t a distant threat—it’s happening now. The good news is that nature can help.
To match the urgency of this crisis, The Nature Conservancy—including the Maryland/DC chapter—is going all in on innovative, planet-sized solutions that maximize nature’s ability to fight climate change while bolstering resilience for our most precious ecosystems and vulnerable communities.
From the Director
Change is Here
In 2018, the Maryland/DC chapter launched an ambitious, five-year capital campaign to finance a science-based strategic plan to tackle climate change and protect clean water for the Chesapeake Bay—two conservation priorities where we know our local actions will have the greatest regional and global impacts.
As we reflect on our 2021 conservation successes, the Maryland/DC chapter is happy to announce the public phase of our fivie-year, $70-million Change is Here capital campaign.
As you explore this page, we highlight some of the chapter’s greatest accomplishments from the past year—accomplishments that were achieved through the focus and energy generated by the Change is Here campaign, and thanks to the generous support of some of our most committed donors. As we look ahead at the work we have left to accomplish over the next two years, it’s critical that we reach our private fundraising goal so that we can continue to use those gifts to leverage public dollars and impact investments.
It’s the combination of these funding sources that allows us to have the outsized impact for which The Nature Conservancy is known. Together with supporters like you, we will work with global colleagues to ensure that our legacy is one of action. Join us to be a part of the greatest success story in the history of the planet.
Together with supporters like you, we will work with global colleagues to ensure that our legacy is one of action. Join us to be a part of the greatest success story in the history of the planet.
2021: Highlights and Successes
We Transform Agriculture
Our goal: to support an agricultural economy where farms provide healthy food, clean water and resiliency to climate change, and support a healthy Chesapeake Bay where people and nature thrive.
We Restore Forests
Our Goal: To conserve and strengthen our piece of the Appalachians—a critical migratory corridor for mammals, birds and amphibians.
We Build Green Cities
Washington, D.C. Goals: A robust stormwater retention credit (SRC) market catalyzed by construction of green infrastructure projects and sale of stormwater credits.
Baltimore Goals: city-wide investments in infrastructure improvements prioritizing nature-based solutions to reduce stormwater runoff impacts on water quality and local flooding and improve coastal climate resilience.
We Strengthen Coasts
Our Goal: To ensure that Maryland’s coastal habitats and communities are resilient in the face of sea-level rise.
2021 A Year in Photos
Scenes and moments from our on-the-ground conservation work.
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Restoration Monitoring: TNC and National Aquarium staff monitor the success of an Atlantic white cedar restoration project at Nassawango Creek Preserve—a partnership more than 10 years in the making. © Deborah Landau / TNC

Restoring an Icon: TNC's SOAR program helps support MD's local economy, oyster restoration efforts and the health of the Chesapeake Bay. © Jay Fleming Photography

Pink Lady's Slipper : (Cypripedium acaule). Applying fire to the landscape has led to the return of several species of orchids at our preserves, including the crested yellow and white-fringed. © Chase McLean / TNC

A Return to Burning: Deborah Landau (L) and Natasha Whetzel (R) follow Covid-19 safety protocols during a return to burning at Delaware's Middleford North Preserve, March 2021. © Matt Kane / TNC

Northern Green Frog: (Lithobates clamitans melanota) Its mating call sounds like the single note of a plucked banjo. © Chase McLean / TNC

One Conservancy: PA/DE's Natasha Whetzel is interviewed during a controlled burn at MD's Sideling Hill Creek Preserve. Cross-chapter collaboration is a key element to conservation success. © Matt Kane / TNC

Fire and Technology: MD's Chase McLean launches a drone during a controlled burn at Nassawango Creek Preserve. The drone can ignite the interior of a burn unit, enhancing safety for fire crews. © Gabe Cahalan / TNC

Wild Turkey Chicks: (Meleagris gallopavo) in the nest at Maryland's Dorchester Pond. © Chase McLean / TNC

Appalachian Stronghold: The Appalachians are a hotbed for salamander biodiversity, like this red-spotted newt (Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens) at Maryland's Finzel Swamp Preserve. © Matt Kane / TNC

Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker: (Sphyrapicus varius) a species of woodpecker that feed at sapwells--neat rows of shallow holes they drill in tree bark. © Matt Kane / TNC
2021 Highlights
At A Glance
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Family Forest Carbon Program
TNC and the American Forest Foundation have partnered to create The Family Forest Carbon Program (FFCP), an initiative that is a win-win for landowners, the environment and wildlife. In 2020, the FFCP expanded to Maryland where landowners who own between 30 and 2,400 forested acres in Garrett, Allegany, Washington, Frederick or Carroll counties are now eligible to participate.
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Restoring Red Spruce
In the spring of 2021, a new project touched down in Western Maryland, where TNC staff, partners and contractors planted more than 10,000 genetically diverse red spruce seedlings on TNC’s Finzel Swamp and Cranesville Swamp preserves. These sites are now part of a larger initiative in the Central Appalachians and will be continually monitored and studied in order to inform future red spruce restoration
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Sharing Findings and Research
As the world’s leading conservation science organization, it is critical that TNC scientists and conservation practitioners disseminate important findings and research to the broader scientific community. In 2021, TNC’s Maryland/DC chapter science team published five peer-reviewed studies on topics ranging from fire ecology to soundscape monitoring to decision science. Our conservation and policy work continues to be guided by science.
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Green Solutions for Urban Stormwater
Through District Stormwater LLC, TNC and the Knollwood Life Plan Community have collaborated on a new green infrastructure project. The new rain garden will collect stormwater runoff from the facility’s parking lots—an estimated 3 million gallons annually—to help slow and clean the runoff before it flows into Rock Creek and ultimately into the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay.
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Baltimore Expansion
In 2020, TNC expanded our Build Green Cities program to Baltimore. This fall, we were excited to announce that Isaac Hametz was hired as the Baltimore Program Director. In this role, Isaac will provide strategic leadership in directing our conservation portfolio in Baltimore and managing the new Baltimore Community Project Manager staff member.
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Policy Success
In the 2021 legislative session, TNC played a critical role in the passage of the Property Assessed Clean Energy Residential (PACE-R) legislation, which expands on the existing PACE program by allowing residential property owners to finance or refinance projects that remediate environmental issues, improve their properties’ resiliency, increase water efficiency, enhance electric grid resiliency, and/or improve energy efficiency.
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Oyster Restoration
Last year, TNC worked with private donors and other partners to purchase more than 5 million surplus farmed oysters from growers in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Washington state. The oysters purchased from more than 20 Maryland oyster farmers were planted on three sanctuary reefs in the Chesapeake Bay, helping those reefs grow to meet restoration goals.
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Collaborating on Regenerative Agriculture
Matthew Houser, Ph.D., was hired as the UMD/TNC Regenerative Agriculture Fellow. His role is a new partnership between TNC and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science to build and execute collaborative projects that will advance our collective goals in regenerative agriculture in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

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