Message from the President
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy undertakes a range of conservation and preservation programs and projects.
Our gardens, tree-planting, and school greening programs help make the cities and towns throughout our region greener and more welcoming. Our rivers, streams and watershed work improves the quality of our important waterways — protecting those in good condition and restoring those with problems. Our land conservation work protects massive, uninterrupted swaths of forestland and other natural areas, protecting our most environmentally significant properties, providing magnificent scenic vistas, and offering opportunities to hike, hunt, fish, camp and observe wildlife. And through the magnificent example of Fallingwater, we invite people to experience a masterpiece of design and creativity, and to experience, often for the first time, the beauty of the Western Pennsylvania landscape within the natural settings of Bear Run and the Laurel Highlands.
In addition to its intrinsic value, the work of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy — through each project we do and each location we protect — also has a dramatic and lasting impact on our region’s quality of life.
For this reason, this issue of Conserve magazine makes quality of life our theme. We examine the surprisingly significant economic value of conserving land and protecting watersheds. We discuss improved recreational access to rivers and streams, made possible by two longtime WPC members. We explore the quality-of-life impacts of our urban tree planting, community gardens and school greening initiatives through photographs. Finally, we profile some of the Conservancy’s approaches to outreach that will enable Fallingwater to inspire even greater numbers of people.
It is a privilege to be a part of an organization that affects so many people, on a daily basis, in positive and meaningful ways. Thank you for helping the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy make this region a better place.
Thomas Saunders
President
Give your legacy roots
By including the WPC in your estate plans, such as through a bequest, a charitable gift annuity, or a gift of life insurance, you will ensure that our natural heritage is also a part of your future legacy.