Q. How can the RTCA program help local groups with a conservation project?

A. RTCA staff assistance includes help in building partnerships to achieve community-set goals, assessing resources, developing concept plans, engaging public participation, and identifying potential sources of funding. Project partners may be non-profit organizations, community groups, tribes or tribal governments, and local or State government agencies. Assistance is for one year and may be renewed for a second year if warranted. Learn more about our application guidelines.

Q. What is "locally-led conservation"?

A. Locally-led conservation places the responsibility for decision-making about conservation matters in the hands of the residents of the community. Believing that the best plans are made by local residents, the RTCA program supports those local groups whose projects offer extensive public involvement.

Q. Does RTCA give grants?

A. No, RTCA does not give grants or loans. Rather, the program's 80 staff are its greatest asset. Instead of money, RTCA supplies a staff person with extensive experience in community-based conservation to work with a local group on a project for a preset duration, typically one to three years during a project's infancy.

Q. Does RTCA decide what rivers or trails should be conserved?

A. No. Local groups select the trails or rivers that they would like to conserve. These local groups then ask RTCA to join them to work on their local conservation project.

Q. Will RTCA own or manage the land?

A. No. RTCA does not own or manage any of the resources they help local groups protect; that is the job of the local group.

Q. What is a facilitator and why is one crucial to a project's success?

A. A facilitator helps groups with diverse interests reach consensus on a plan of action. Since most conservation projects cross several jurisdictions and involve numerous groups, they tend to be complex and need a good facilitator, especially as a project is just getting started.

RTCA staff are trained in facilitation, along with other technical aspects of conservation. RTCA staff play the role of facilitator insuring that as many people from different parts of the community -- citizen and business groups, local and state government agencies, etc. -- are involved as possible in helping reach consensus on a plan of action.

Q. Why does RTCA encourage local groups to add as many partners as possible for each project?

A. More partners will mean more ideas from different perspectives, and hopefully, more supporters. Ultimately, the more partners a project has, the better the project, for it is likely to be one that everyone in the community can support.

Q. What's a typical group with whom RTCA works?

A. There is none. Conservation problems vary greatly, and so do the kinds of groups with whom RTCA works.

Traditionally, RTCA has worked with groups -- non-profits, local or state government appointed commissions, local government agencies, etc -- on river or trail projects. But in the past five years, RTCA has expanded its work to include local groups who are developing greenways, scenic byways and heritage areas.

However, RTCA's core business remains supporting rivers and trails groups. In the last few years around the country, RTCA helped:

Q. How can I tell if RTCA could help my local group with a conservation project?

A. RTCA staff are always available by telephone, mail, or e-mail, and are ready to discuss your project ideas or conservation challenge to determine if there might be a good match between your group's needs and RTCA's ability to help. Contact them anytime!