Tug Hill for Tomorrow

Tug Hill for

Tomorrow

Save What Matters Most

watercolor drawing by Bob MacNamara
Photo: ©Zachary Wakeman / Green Darner Drawing: ©Bob McNamara
photo by Ezekiel Trystan

Tug Hill is only as strong as the people who care…

You know how special this place is—and you also know we can’t take it for granted. Each decade that goes by, a bit of Tug Hill gets chipped away…

At a time when it seems like the world is an uncertain place, you can change lives for the better, one farm, one stream, one woodland, one quiet trail and nature-filled classroom, at a time. But it won’t happen by accident.

That’s why we are asking you to join us in the Tug Hill FOR Tomorrow Campaign.

snowy owl sitting on a wood fence post

Protecting more than land— protecting a family’s heritage

There are many farmers in and around Tug Hill who won’t get the chance to see the next generation of farmers take over their land.

That’s because young farmers find it challenging to compete with development prices given the tight profit margins of farming. And, many older farmers need to sell so they can retire. One solution involves conserving a farm so the next generation can afford the land. To do so, however, farmers usually have to compete for highly competitive state and federal land protection funds.

Your gift will leverage millions in farmland conservation funding and ensure that farm families can transfer their land to the next generation.

tiger swallow in flight
Photo by Christin Christman
bobcat in a snowpile scouting for its next meal

Forests provide more than timber

With a changing climate, and the need for plants and animals to adapt to those changes, maintaining and protecting Tug Hill’s forestlands has never been more important.

Forests serve as sponges and filters for our water, and form the basis for much of our tourism economy. They, like farms, are at risk of becoming fragmented by development.

When that happens, they can’t function as well for wildlife habitat—nor for forestry or tourism—and they become more vulnerable to increasingly frequent and severe weather events.

Together we can improve the resiliency of the Tug Hill landscape at a time when each year matters more than the last.

Fisher

Kids are staying inside, even in rural areas

Your love of the land may seem natural to you, but it’s more at risk than ever before. That’s because kids are now spending less time outdoors than the average prisoner. Put another way, the lure of technology is winning.

That’s why providing free, fun, family and community outings is so important. It connects them to the land and water, creating memories that they will cherish and a love of the outdoors.

Your gift will allow us to partner with libraries, schools, and community groups to improve and expand programming that inspires curiosity, instills a sense of place, and fosters a lasting love of Tug Hill.

Northern-Leopard, Pickerel, and Wood frogs
Tug Hill picnic
group enjoys peaceful walk around pond and wetlands

Let’s make nature a necessity

Between family obligations, school, our jobs, and community responsibilities, it’s a challenge for many of us to break away from our busy lives to experience the wonders of Tug Hill.

When we make the benefits of outdoor experiences accessible to everyone, everywhere, we build stronger connections and communities. We need accessible public places to connect with friends and family, and to ground ourselves in the healing power of nature.

Your gift will help us work with friends and neighbors, local community groups, towns, and volunteers, to create new public conservation area and create and maintain trails.

Illustration by Bob McNamara

You are needed as never before…

If there was ever a time to recognize the importance of creating community, a sense of place, quality of life, local food, and respite from the stress of modern life—it is now.

To retain the viability of our farms, forests, and wildlife, and the waters that run throughout, we must significantly increase the pace of conservation.

This is a moment you’ll never forget; you’ll have saved some of the most cherished places of Tug Hill, for generations to come.

delicate snow dusted trees