The Trust’s
goal is to eliminate inholdings within
the National Wilderness Preservation
System and to help to address issues
of inholdings in proposed wilderness
areas. More than 400,000 acres of
privately owned lands remain within
designated wilderness areas. The Trust
seeks to acquire wilderness lands
and every effort is directed solely
at accomplishing the goal of wilderness
free of private ownership. The Trust
has no ambitions beyond achieving
the goal of the Wilderness Act to
create a land where man himself is
a visitor who does not remain.
To accomplish its mission and goal The
Wilderness Land Trust:
Is developing the capacity to complete transactions
to acquire and preserve 70% of the remaining inholdings.
The balance of threatened lands is protected through cooperative
partners using existing tools. We do not need to do it all.
Maintains a variety of informal partnerships with
government agencies, conservation organizations, landowners,
foundations, lenders and individual supporters.
Creates strategic partnerships with like-minded
organizations, including the Nature Conservancy, the Trust
for Public Land, local land trusts and the Wilderness Society.
Duplication is wasteful.
Since the Trust works to place these lands
into the protection of the wilderness system, we do not look
to create vast endowments, only enough resources to acquire
lands and hold them through the long and difficult process
of transfer to federal ownership.
