Blue Ridge Conservancy is pleased to announce the hiring of Tana McLean as the organization’s first Stewardship Associate. McLean joins the stewardship team to support Director of Stewardship Ben Lucas in the yearly monitoring, management, and protection of over 200 conservation easements and preserves. 

Blue Ridge Conservancy and The Conservation Fund announce the purchase of a critical 1-acre inholding on Grandmother Mountain near Linville, NC. The property is located within the boundary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is managed by the National Park Service. This land is the final puzzle piece to a 210-acre procurement that TCF transferred to the National Park Service in 1998.

Blue Ridge Conservancy and the Land for Tomorrow coalition thank the North Carolina General Assembly for making a strong investment in the Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund through the 2026 state budget while maintaining stable funding for the N.C. Land and Water Fund and the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund. In addition, the General Assembly authorized the creation of the Brushy Mountains State Natural Area, an initiative spearheaded by BRC and Foothills Conservancy of NC.