Steering Committee
Chris Aldrich, Greenwich Land Trust
Katie Blake, H2H Coordinator, Highstead
Elyse Arnow Brill, Pound Ridge Conservation Commission
Rod Christie, Mianus River Gorge
David Kvinge, Westchester County Department of Planning
Bill Labich, Advisor, Highstead
Mary Ellen Lemay, Aspetuck Land Trust / Trumbull Conservation Commission
John Rhodes, Mt Kisco Conservation Advisory Council
Lisa Shanahan, Norwalk Land Trust
Louise Washer, Pollinator Pathway Northeast / Norwalk River Watershed Association
Kara Whelan, Westchester Land Trust
H2H Partner Organizations
Connecticut: Aquarion Water Company, Aspetuck Land Trust, Bethel Land Trust, Brookfield Open Space Legacy, Inc., CT-DEEP, Fairfield County Regional Conservation Partnership, Greenwich Audubon, Greenwich Land Trust, Housatonic Valley Association, Highstead, Newtown Forest Association, Norwalk Land Trust, Norwalk River Watershed Assoc., Redding Land Trust, Ridgefield Conservation Commission, Ridgefield Land Conservancy, Rowayton Gardeners, Stamford Land Conservation Trust, Wilton Land Conservation Trust, Yale University.
New York: Bedford Audubon Society, Bedford 2030, Friends of the Great Swamp, Harlem Valley A.T. Community, Mianus River Gorge, Native Plants Center, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, North Salem Conservation Advisory Council, North Salem Open Land Foundation, Oblong Land Conservancy, Pound Ridge Land Conservancy, Putnam County Land Trust, Saw Mill River Audubon, Somers Land Trust, Teatown Lake Reservation, The Invasives Project – Pound Ridge, Watershed Agricultural Council, Westchester County, Westchester Land Trust, Yorktown Advisory Committee on Open Space, Yorktown Land Trust.
H2H Working Groups
Land Protection Working Group – Members of the Land Protection working group devise strategies and develop projects around one of H2H’s key goals: protecting land. They are responsible for identifying areas of our partnership region prime for protection and working towards making that protection happen. This is the working group that led both the 2018 H2H Conservation Map and the 2019 H2H Urban Mapping Initiative. If you are interested in getting involved, contact group chair Chris Aldrich, Director of Land Stewardship, Greenwich Land Trust, chris@gltrust.org.
Municipal Engagement Working Group – This working group focuses on engaging the 75 municipalities comprising the H2H partnership region. They work to partner with local officials and local governments to spread the word about H2H and to promote the values of conservation and stewardship to the communities therein. If you are interested in getting involved, contact group chair David Kvinge, Director of Environmental Planning, Westchester County Department of Planning, dsk2@westchestergov.com.
Engagement Working Group – This working group (formerly known as the Landowner Engagement Group) is responsible for engaging communities throughout the H2H partnership region. One of the most successful community outreach efforts, the Pollinator Pathway Northeast initiative, was born out of this working group. If you are interested in getting involved, contact interim group chair Katie Blake, Conservationist, Highstead, kblake@highstead.net.
Partner Training and Capacity Building Working Group – This working group is responsible for putting on workshops and spearheading the work towards H2H’s objective in empowering our partners. Examples of the events they’ve led include a chainsaw safety class, promoting eBird as a tool for conservation, and most recently a peer-exchange webinar about fundraising during the pandemic. If you are interested in getting involved, contact group chair Jock McKean, Executive Director, North Salem Open Land Foundation at jockomck@gmail.com.
Pollinator Pathway Initiative – This initiative started as the major landowner outreach component of the 2017 H2H Conservation Initiative with the goal of getting communities involved in building connections between their homes and the greater landscape to support the free movement and health of native pollinators. You can learn more about the initiative on their website. If you are interested in getting involved, contact group chair Louise Washer, President, Norwalk River Watershed Association, lbwasher@gmail.com.