Applicants for voluntary land trust accreditation must demonstrate implementation of Land Trust Standards and Practices. The Commission currently evaluates applicants on select indicators from the Standards. These indicators are used under license with and designated by the Land Trust Alliance and were chosen based on the following criteria:
- Responsible governance of the organization;
- Protection of the public interest with sound and sustainable land transactions and stewardship;
- Ethical operations;
- Accountability to donors and the public; and,
- Compliance with all laws, such as IRC §170(h) and §501(c)(3).
The list of indicators is reviewed periodically and has been revised since the accreditation program’s inception.
- The current list is located in the Requirements Manual; numbers refer to indicator elements as they are designated in the 2017 edition of Land Trust Standards and Practices.
- A new list of indicators was approved by the Alliance as part of the 2017 Land Trust Standards and Practices and was fully integrated into the accreditation program during 2019.
