Abstract

Measuring Conservation Progress for Large Landscape Partnerships
Track: Conservation
Authors: Bob Heuer, Brenda Faber, Mitchel Hannon

Long term viability of large landscape initiatives requires defining and measuring success over time. This is essential to attract and maintain financial support, keep local partners engaged, and assess and adapt landscape strategies to meet long term needs.

This presentation will discuss the development of 'Measures of Progress' for the White Mountains to Moosehead Lake Initiative, a collaborative large landscape effort among conservation practitioners in the Northern Forests of Maine and New Hampshire. The presentation will highlight a mapping site that provides interactive display of visual progress toward identified landscape goals. The website is used to highlight common objectives and track cumulative successes across participating organizations (shared goals, shared geographies, and collaborative efforts). The 'dashboard' tool allows project partners to select an identified metric, view annual progress toward conservation targets for that metric, explore a map of targeted resources, and celebrate the success of recent conservation projects.