Traci Willis

CILTI preserves the best of Central Indiana’s natural areas, protecting plants and animals, so Hoosiers can experience the wonder of the state’s natural heritage. Our organization is a member of Indiana Land Protection Alliance and is nationally accredited by the Land Trust Alliance Commission. CILTI works closely with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. We proudly partner with the Division of Nature Preserves, The Nature Conservancy and many land trusts from across the state in our land protection efforts. To guide our work, we have developed a strategic conservation plan that blends landscape, plant community and species-based methodologies. Our approach is three-tiered, as we strive to: -protect land of local or community significance* -assist partners with their priority lands** -preserve core conservation areas (our main focus) How We Work: The Central Indiana Land Trust has protected more than 8,800 acres of Indiana’s natural heritage since 1990. This protection usually takes one of three forms: -We own and manage nature preserves. After receiving donations of land or buying land, we manage those lands as preserves for the benefit of the public. -We hold conservation easements. We forge legal agreements with willing landowners to protect their land by restricting certain activities and conserving conservation values forever. -We form management agreements. We help landowners develop and implement stewardship plans that protect their properties’ unique conservation values. *Land of local or community significance includes properties that may be less valuable from an ecosystem standpoint, but are meaningful projects because of their special features or importance to the community. **Partners’ priority lands might be owned by organizations like another land trust, state DNR or a local park system. Our role may be different depending on the situation.