This issue of Conserve is devoted to a single theme: partnerships. The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy could not accomplish the things we do without our many partners.

The Conservancy has protected more than 11,000 acres of natural
lands so far in 2008. Properties protected this year include:

• several miles of forestland along the banks of the Clarion River in Clarion County
  
  
• a 2000-acre addition to Forbes State Forest in Somerset County
  
  
• the open space connection between Ohiopyle State Park and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Kentuck Knob in Fayette County
  
  
• and farmland and marshes along French Creek in Crawford and Mercer Counties.
  
  We could not have conserved these magnificent places without support and funding from state agencies, private foundations and individuals who care deeply about the perpetual conservation that results from these acquisitions. And much of our land conservation work is done in partnership with local land trusts, such as our joint efforts with the ClearWater Conservancy in Centre County, the Lake Erie Regional Conservancy and many others.
  
  Our Natural Heritage staff works to protect rare and endangered species and the habitats they need to survive throughout the state. WPC’s Land Conservation staff works closely with the Natural Heritage program staff to take full advantage of this biodiversity information to guide our land conservation work. The Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program is itself a partnership between WPC, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
  
  In our Community Gardens and Greenspace work, Conservancy staff coordinated the efforts of more than 6,000 volunteers who planted gardens this year! We are providing street trees in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County in partnership with the City of Pittsburgh, the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Allegheny County and a host of private partners. The Conservancy is adding landscaping to all 65 Pittsburgh Public Schools in partnership with the Grable Foundation, the city school district and others.
  
  Our Freshwater Conservation Program is protecting our rivers, streams and watersheds through work with many local watershed assistance groups. In the ecologically significant and beautiful Brokenstraw watershed near Erie, our work goes further because of the local efforts and expertise of the Brokenstraw Watershed Association. Similar local organizations in watersheds across our region work each day with us to protect and restore our waters.
  
  We are able to preserve Fallingwater and share it with the public because of the countless individuals, families, businesses and foundations that help to support its preservation. Our partners at Fallingwater range widely: from the school districts in five counties, where students go to Fallingwater each year to learn, to the glass and paint industry corporations in Pittsburgh that work with the Conservancy on innovative technical solutions to maintaining a complex building, to individuals who care deeply about Fallingwater and help fund its preservation.
  
  Most of all, WPC appreciates and depends on the partnership and support of our 10,300 members. Much of our financial support comes from individual members. The funding, volunteer efforts and encouragement provided by Conservancy members throughout the region and beyond help to sustain WPC and allow us to contribute what we do for this region.
  
  In this issue you will read about just a few of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy’s varied, and treasured, partnerships.
  

 Winter 2008 Conserve  |  Western Pennsylvania Conservancy  |  Fallingwater