Standards & Practices Training Series

Session 2: Board Governance & Leadership

A Board for all Seasons

Taught by David Allen

This fun and interactive seminar offers a fresh perspective on the job of running a land trust. The underlying context is the need to develop an organization that is sustainable for the long haul and able to protect conservation values in perpetuity. The program is designed for board and staff who are ready to find the sweet spot – where the vision lines up with the conservation, the enthusiasm flows, and each challenge is manageable. Against a framework of the arc of board service – learning/doing/leading – we will offer five outside-the-lines strategies for reorganizing and rejuvenating the board experience to ensure the kind of organization that is needed – in perpetuity. We’ll also provide practical, hand-on tools for participants to take back and implement right away, and we’ll practice using them.

About David Allen

David Allen is the principal consultant for Development for Conservation, a consulting business specializing in fund development for nonprofit conservation organizations. David’s background includes more than 30 years working in annual fundraising, major donor development, communications, and marketing. He worked for Nature Conservancy chapters in Oregon, Texas, and Wisconsin over a 13-year career and in senior management for the Madison, Wisconsin-based Sand County Foundation. He has devoted his professional career to helping conservation organizations and land trusts pursue excellence in all aspects of their conservation endeavors. David is a skilled teacher and presenter, particularly in major gift fundraising, and served TNC as an internal consultant and national trainer within the context of his Wisconsin assignment. David has conducted numerous workshops for Land Trust Alliance and other land trust service organizations. He is currently consulting with land trusts in nine states. Practice specialties include Development Audits, major gift development training, and campaign fundraising (both annual and capital).

In addition to his fundraising consulting work, David is also a member of Conservation Consulting Group, a consultancy devoted to helping land trusts through comprehensive strategic planning, organizational assessment, and accreditation preparation. The team identifies governance, finance, and programmatic issues and provides recommendations, advice, and templates to improve and strengthen those areas. Conservation Consulting Group offers the competitive advantage of the expertise multiple team members bring to the project.

CLCC Standards & Practices trainings are presented in partnership with the Land Trust Alliance through the generous support provided by the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.