Grassland Bird Trust News & Stories

On September 25, 2021, Grassland Bird Trust hosted a member-only event at Chestnut Ridge Farm. Birders of all levels came to the farm to improve their birding skills with retired DEC Chief Ecologist and artist Steve Sanford. Hear about the morning events from Steve himself: “We all savored the warmth and sunshine of a spectacular […]

GBT board members (Kathy Roome, Keith Swensen, Todd Scheuermann, and Paloma Spina), executive director Laurie LaFond, and office manager Bernadette Valentino-Morrison gathered for the annual board retreat on September 18 and 19, 2021 in Cambridge, NY. This retreat was a special treat for everyone involved, providing the board and staff with an opportunity to work […]

Grassland Bird Trust (GBT) signed an agreement in May to lease 44 acres of GBT’s land to Eden Renewables, a developer of pollinator-friendly, biodiverse community solar farms based in Troy, NY, for the next 20 years. With GBT’s help, Eden will maintain this land for the sole purpose of maximizing its value as habitat for […]

Anonymous Donation Boosts Conservation Fund! Our heartfelt thanks to a very special member who recently sent an anonymous donation of $10,000 to support GBT’s conservation work! Your generous donation is greatly appreciated both by us and by the beautiful birds whom you are helping to keep alive in our region. Brooklyn Bird Club Raises $11K […]

On May 8, 2021, friends of Grassland Bird Trust (GBT) gathered at Hicks Orchard to participate in Global Big Day, a worldwide event where bird-lovers reported bird observations to eBird during the peak of spring bird migration. Our event was just one of many that contributed to a world-record-setting day! There were 51,800 people spanning 192 countries […]

The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. Grassland Bird Trust, Inc. is pleased to announce it is applying for accreditation. A public comment period is now open. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust […]

The “Capacity & Excellence Grant” From the NYS Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) Land Trust Alliance (LTA) and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) awarded Grassland Bird Trust (GBT) a $50,000 “Capacity & Excellence Grant” in December 2020. The program is funded through NY’s Environmental Protection Fund. “The grants announced today support – activities […]

When NYC entrepreneurs Angie Co, Tina Alleva and Ryan Goldberg launched their first campaign to benefit Grassland Bird Trust’s work to conserve critical habitat for endangered and threatened grassland birds, none of us would have predicted the incredible response it would inspire. “We had orders coming in from all over the country,” said Angie. She […]

Excerpt from Bird Collective April E-newsletter: “We were on the move at the end of February to see all the amazing work that the Grassland Bird Trust, our first partner organization, is doing in upstate New York. We met Laurie LaFond, the founder of GBT, to share with her the funds we’ve raised so far, […]

Congratulations to Mary-Beth Wagner, 2019 Volunteer of the Year!  Last year she contributed well over 100 hours helping to plan, organize and set up the Winter Raptor Fest WILD Encounter – then staffed it on both days! She’s not afraid to get her hands dirty, either. Last year she organized, oversaw and implemented a tree planting project […]