Chesapeake Gateways Partner Profile: The Trust for Public Land

The Trust for Public Land is a national nonprofit organization that works to connect everyone to the benefits and joys of the outdoors. Since 1972, the Trust for Public Land has protected more than 3 million acres of land, completed over 5,000 parks, trails, and schoolyards across the U.S., and connected 9 million people to the outdoors. The Trust for Public Land’s research from 14,000 cities and towns shows that 100 million people, including 28 million children, do not have a park within a 10-minute walk of home. The Trust for Public Land findings also reveal that across the United States, parks serving primarily nonwhite populations are half the size of parks that serve majority white populations and serve five times more people.

The National Park Service's Chesapeake Gateways, the Trust for Public Land, and partners, including the Chesapeake Conservation Partnership, worked to identify innovative ways to leverage urban parks and greenspace to strengthen and improve access for low-income and black, indigenous, Hispanic, Asian and Pacific Islander, and other people of color communities in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

This collaboration completed a parks and greenspace assessment for the urban centers of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. They created Roadmaps for Greener Communities for Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. These roadmaps have actionable recommendations to improve climate, health, and equity outcomes for underinvested communities through management and use of existing parks and expansion of parks and greenspace.

Additionally, you can use the interactive map to find your community in the Chesapeake Watershed and explore stressors that could be addressed through park and greenspace investment. By clicking on your community within the map, you can see overall scores as well as scores specific to health, equity, climate, park access or economics.