STRATEGIC PLAN | Chatham Conservation Foundation

STRATEGIC PLAN 2019 - 2021

Mission Statement

The Chatham Conservation Foundation, Inc. (CCF) is a nonprofit, donor supported,
community land trust that preserves open space in perpetuity for the benefit of the
people, plants, animals, and ecosystems of Chatham, through acquisition, stewardship,
education and advocacy.

Vision

Our inspiring landscapes will be permanently preserved for generations of residents and visitors. We strive to preserve open space that balances the protection of wildlife and the environment with greater public access. We do this through acquiring lands as opportunities arise and serving as good stewards of our currently held conservation properties.

Chatham Conservation Foundation will work to ensure we are an economically sustainable organization able to accomplish our goals together with our active community.

Goal #1 - Strengthen the long-term financial sustainability of the Foundation

In its 2018 Strategic Plan, CCF determined to expand our approach to achieving our mission to
include more land management and restorations and increased community education and
engagement. To do this, we have hired three professional staff and increased our expenses
accordingly. While we have also substantially increased our fundraising, we have been drawing
on both grants and our endowment to fund our expanded mission. Our goal is to have
donations and grants fund all of our operating and staff expenses within the next 5 years.
To do this, we will expand our sources of revenue through more business sponsorships,
increased planned giving, cultivation of major donors, and increased membership, as well as
careful management of our expenses and financial resources.

Goal #2 - Maximize habitat protection on CCF properties

In this era of environmental threats, it is clear that without intervention, the ecosystems
managed by CCF and the habitats they represent will continue to degrade. To preserve these
ecosystems, CCF is proactively identifying and planning for the maintenance and improvement
of the600+ acres that we own and the 200+ acres we oversee via conservation restrictions.
Baseline work has been underway for the last several years, and it is time to expand this work.
To do this, we will develop priorities and methods for monitoring, maintaining and improving
parcels, and will continue our proactive land management activities.

Goal #3 - Preserve more open space through acquisition and conservation restrictions

While Chatham already has significant conservation areas, CCF remains committed to seeking
out additional lands to preserve, especially lands that will extend and enhance existing
conservation areas.
To do this, we will systematically Identify environmentally significant properties and search for more land by CR donors.

Goal #4 - Prepare CCF for the potential effects of climate change

The majority of CCF’s preserved lands comprise salt marshes and upland forests, both of which
will be subject to the effects of climate change over the next 30-50 years. CCF needs to
understand the potential impacts and the opportunities for intervention at a local level, and to
begin long-range planning.
To do this, we will educate the Board on the current science of climate change as it applies on
Cape Cod, develop an approach to assessing the potential effects on our properties, and
develop an initial response plan.

Goal #5 -Foster a connection between the community and the CCF mission

People who come to Chatham are entranced by its environmental beauty. The environment today needs
a grassroots corps of people who are not only entranced but committed to conservation issues. CCF
sees our role to continue to educate full and part time residents as well as visitors, about the beaty and
the benefits of a robust ecosystem and what they can do to help.
To do this, CCF will expand our education and advocacy efforts, recruit volunteers, encourage broader
engagement and increase community outreach about CCF and our mission.

"Conservation is a cause that has no end. There is no point at which we will say our work is finished." - Rachel Carson