The desire to farm is powerful — sparked by love of food, the land, community, entrepreneurship, and more. But it is a complicated undertaking, and the list of questions that need to be addressed before diving in is long. If you are dreaming of farming and puzzled about how to get started, the Land Stewardship…

“As a landowner, you have the power to determine the legacy of your land- that decision is the most important decision you can make.” — Bill McMillin dairy/ beef farmer who, with his wife Bonnie, transitioned their farm to a non-related beginning farmer neighbor You are in the right place to start or keep moving…  Read More →

Bequests A bequest (or planned gift) goes a long way toward ensuring the Land Stewardship Project’s long-term impact in the generations to come. The most common planned gifts are made through wills or trusts, but many people choose to make legacy gifts to LSP through retirement accounts, pension plans, life insurance, charitable trusts, securities, gift…

Conservation Leases Toolkit Below is a list of documents and websites meant to support anyone working to improve conservation on rented land — from both the landowners’ and farmers’ perspectives. If you’d like to know more about why conservation on rented land is important, check out this podcast. Landowners who are thinking about conservation leases…

Tools to Get You Started A farm is a deeply personal thing. It is a home, a business, a living ecosystem, a way of life. It can also be an investment in the future of agriculture. When a family makes a farm transition plan, they can shape the values and stewardship that will be carried…

In spite of the uneven playing field that often leaves beginning farmers few opportunities to access land to farm, there are some innovative ways they are doing just that. Check out a few of these examples: Videos: Harvey Benson’s & Bonita Underbakke’s Passion for Transitioning Land to the Next Generation of Stewards: A Different Kind…

In February 2018, the Land Stewardship Project board of directors created the Land Stewardship Action Fund (LSAF), a 501 c4 partner organization, because they recognized the power that comes with being able to drive forward the mission and goals of LSP with an expanded set of political and electoral tools. LSAF came out of the…