Advocacy in Action is a feature in Exchange, Land Trust Alliance's National Journal of Land Conservation. Learn more! Tips for Reaching Out to Legislators By Henrietta Jordan Do you know who your legislators are? Or, more important, do they know who you are? Here’s how to begin building advocacy partnerships with them. Start with a letter. Reach out to district office staff. Establish relationships with key staff. Build on existing relationships. Keep in touch. Call on your state legislators when you’re at the state capital. Send thank-you notes. Encourage casual personal connections. Get more detail on each of these tips. Henrietta Jordan is the policy and assessments manager of the Land Trust Alliance.

Advocacy in Action: Connecting with Your Legislators

ILLINOIS - I am living testament to the fact that no matter what the size or capacity of your land trust, you can do advocacy. The Barrington Hills Conservation Trust (BHCTrust) in Barrington Hills, Illinois, has no staff and 160 members garnered in our first membership drive held in October 2005.

Mary Bradford-White

We continue to accomplish our goals through the work of nine dedicated volunteer board trustees and about six regular volunteers. The trustees are the driving force of our organization. In addition, our members respond whenever BHCTrust calls one of them with a special request.

We are very fortunate to live in a community that cares so deeply about preserving our natural resources, rural character and cultural heritage.

We have also been fortunate to have established a great relationship with someone who is in a position to help us immensely. This was done using a handy little tool called “networking.”

Founded in 2001, the Barrington Hills Conservation Trust started as a grassroots initiative built from the inside out. Our mission is to preserve the open land, the rural character, and the scenic, historic, recreational and ecologically significant resources of Barrington Hills and our nearby communities.

We have been working on our connections to the four counties in which we work, Lake, Cook, McHenry and Kane, building credibility and contacts by attending village meetings on a regular basis. We have also nurtured contacts with members of other not-for-profit community organizations that we felt were well run and effective. Often, if we have a problem or need information, someone from another organization will be able to help.

Well, last year we had a problem. A big one. When the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) made its recommendations in January, suddenly we saw our work being threatened. This was the catalyst for discovering a valuable connection.

One of our board members served on another board with the wife of Representative Mark H. Beaubien Jr. (R), Assistant Republican Leader in the Illinois General Assembly. When the JCT issue came up, we talked to the representative’s wife, Dee Beaubien, and that opened a door for BHCTrust. At our request, Rep. Beaubien was happy to contact some members of Congress that he knew, thus ensuring that they heard from someone they trusted about how important the tax deductions for conservation donations are to the communities that they represent.

Mary Bradford-White on the rolling green hills of her community. Photos courtesy of the Barrington Hills Conservation Trust.

The story of this relationship also speaks to the importance of a strong board as part of the mix. Our friend and board member, Phil Bash, was one of our community’s best loved members—he knew everyone and everyone loved him. (Sadly, he passed away this past December). Phil helped found and then served on the Hospice of Northeastern Illinois board for many years. Dee Beaubien was a member of that board and had worked with Phil for years. They had a strong friendship and trust in each other.

So when Phil told Dee that BHCTrust, an organization he supported strongly, needed help with lobbying against the JCT recommendations, Dee was willing to listen. Phil and I were invited to meet with Dee over tea and explain our position and the issues we faced. Dee agreed that Mark would be interested. Mark asked that I send a brief outline of the issues and some background information along with our recommendations. (The Land Trust Alliance support information was wonderful—that’s pretty much what we used.)

We discovered that Rep. Beaubien is very interested in our work and can be a powerful advocate when we need help. Mark has really been a kind of touchstone for us regarding some of our land projects. He knows what partnerships will work, and which ones won’t. I’m always delighted when I can run an idea by Mark first. He’s saved us from some wrong steps and also pointed us in some very successful directions. Mark has served as representative for our area for many years, is highly respected by both parties and has wonderful connections; so you can imagine how helpful his insights and guidance are.

Mark explains that he has “always had a passionate concern for conservation” and that conservation easements represent “an excellent way to blend conservation with some private usage.” He says that because he is in the legislature, “it’s inevitable that I know the congressional and senatorial leaders and if I can get them to at least look at a letter from the Trust, then I see that as a very appropriate way to help local conservation.”

A specific example of Rep. Beaubien’s help came with our involvement with the OpenLands Project. The Illinois Recreational Use of Land and Water Areas Act was amended in 2005. The new amendment was to provide additional protection to property owners who make their land available for hunting and recreational shooting activities. However, it eliminated protection to landowners who open their property to the public for all other recreational activities, such as fishing, hiking, horseback riding, biking and bird watching. With the changes to the Act, many landowners lost a critical layer of protection, which may cause them to severely restrict or eliminate access to their sites.

BHCTrust contacted our local riding club, Pony Club, Basset Club, and the Village of Barrington Hills and asked them to sign the petition that Partners for Parks and Wildlife, a 150-member coalition of which OpenLands is a lead member (and of which Land Trust Alliance is also a member), would be presenting to the state legislature. We also sent Mark background material on the issue and asked him to support our efforts in Springfield.

At press time, this issue is on hold and Partners for Parks and Wildlife hopes to meet with the trail lawyers and Senator Cullerton (who also wants the original language of the bill restored) sometime after Labor Day.

So what would I tell other small land trusts about how to get involved in policy work? It’s all about building relationships, about networking, about getting to know people in your community. You have to build up your own confidence too; confidence in your organization. You may not always find supporters. Just because you make contact with someone, it doesn’t always mean he or she will support you. But at least you have an ear now, and if you can get them to listen, that’s half the battle. It’s all about communicating. (posted 7/10/06)