Leaders recognized name should be reflective of entire service area
The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast is re-introducing itself to the residents of Southwest Florida as Big Waters Land Trust, leaders of the nonprofit announced on Dec. 6.
In its 20-year history, “humbly starting” as the Sarasota-based Sarasota Conservation Foundation before transitioning to the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast — as it has been known for over a decade — the organization has seen its impact and ability to support its community grow exponentially, a news release points out. Its leaders also have recognized that the nonprofit’s name should be reflective of its entire service area — “both the coastal and inland communities” — the release adds.
The rebranding was announced at the organization’s Annual Conservation Celebration on Friday, Dec. 6, the release says.
“We thought long and hard, and we knew the time for a new name had come,” said Christine P. Johnson, president of Big Waters Land Trust, in the release. “As we explored potential new names,” she continued, “we wanted to celebrate what makes Southwest Florida so very special. Looking at our service area, which covers from South Tampa Bay to the Everglades, we realized it is water that defines our region. And because it’s Florida, we don’t just have small rivers and lakes, we have BIG WATERS,” she pointed out with emphasis in the release.
The region’s only accredited land trust, Big Waters has a service area encompassing Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties, including three national estuaries — Sarasota Bay, Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor — plus “four significant rivers” — the Myakka, the Manatee, the Peace and the Caloosahatchee, the release points out. “Through ongoing collaborations with the State of Florida, local municipalities, other nonprofits, community groups, private landowners, individual philanthropists, foundations, and more, Big Waters conserves the land our community and wildlife need to thrive, protects our area’s most iconic natural landscapes, and works to improve the health of local waters for the benefit of all who live, work, and play here in Southwest Florida,” the release continues.
“Between the accelerating impacts of climate change and intense development pressures as more and more people move to Florida, there’s never been a more important time to protect nature,” noted Sam Valentin, Big Waters’ director of marketing and events, in the release. “Together with our conservation community,” she pointed out, “we protect the land and water of Southwest Florida because we envision a future in which the human and natural worlds flourish together.”
To date, Big Waters has protected more than 20,000 acres across 60 different properties in its five-county service area, the release adds. Notable recent initiatives include the preservation of 58 acres in suburban Manatee County, 656 acres at the Longino Ranch in eastern Sarasota County, the 64-acre Crooked River Ranch located on the Manatee River in Manatee County, and 20 acres located within Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park in Port Charlotte, which Big Waters recently sold to the state as an addition to the park.
“We are the same organization, but at the start of a new chapter,” the organization’s president, Johnson added in the release. “Whether you’re looking to conserve nature on your property or make a difference in your community, Big Waters Land Trust is here to help save the land you love.”