by Steffney Thompson
Photo courtesy of the University of Georgia School of Law
After serving as ORLT's Executive Director for over 20 years, Steffney Thompson began a new position as Land Conservation Clinic Director at UGA in 2023. We were eager to hear how things are going at this new clinic and with Steffney. We thought we'd share her update with you:
The Land Conservation Clinic has started its second year supporting land conservation in Georgia. The Clinic is a collaboration between the School of Law and the School of Ecology, where law students and Ecology Masters students work together to support conservation in the state and beyond. Clinic clients have included Georgia land trusts, statewide and national conservation organizations, and federal and county agencies. While student projects have varied widely in nature and scope, all were tied to answering nonprofit and government client’s real land conservation needs and questions. During its first complete year of operation, 14 law students and 5 master’s students from ecology and forestry worked together on a number of important projects that addressed real needs, including:
Drafted conservation easements that protected land across the state
Incorporated a new land trust that will serve the rapidly developing Lake Lanier region;
Crafted deed provisions that both protected a land trust owned preserve and ensured qualification for property tax exemption;
Established the additional protection needed for a county nature park with archaeological features and created an ordinance prohibiting removal of artifacts;
Produced educational material for landowners distinguishing between permanent conservation easements and property tax reduction term contracts;
Revised a guide to solar leases and contracts for Georgia farmers;
Determined appropriate alternative energy provisions for conservation easements; and
Co-hosted a workshop examining local wetland protection options with over 60 participants.
The Clinic offers students a chance to dive deeply into land conservation policy, law, and science, as well as an opportunity to gain experience interacting with clients, managing projects, and communicating with various audiences: essential professional skills which are broadly applicable.
This year’s projects are just as diverse and interesting, with the potential for real the students to make a real contribution to land conservation efforts and thereby provide public benefit and service to the state. And of course, it’s not just clinic students who are learning! As the Clinic founding director, I am excited to learn more about the magic of teaching and to have this opportunity to dive more into a subject I care deeply about. There is a lot going on in the Georgia, conservation wise, from the new Georgia Farm Preservation program, to the NRCS’s expanded conservation opportunities, to the Department of Defense’s REPI programs, to new land trusts, and new challenges and opportunities for conservation. I am grateful that the UGA students now are able to learn about and do land conservation, and then take this knowledge with them as they go on in their professional lives.