Heartlands December Project Updates
Reflecting on 2024 and Looking Ahead
As we close out 2024, we would like to express our gratitude to the community for their ongoing commitment to the Keweenaw Heartlands Project and the intensive and ongoing work involved in transitioning this forest into public ownership. Together, we have accomplished a great deal this year. Here are our top three highlights:
The Heartlands Community Advisory Committee and subcommittees carefully reviewed and refined the local, public governance model that is foundational to this project, developing key components such as amendments to state law, new draft articles of incorporation, and plans for establishing a future elected Forest and Recreation Authority Board and advisory committees to that Authority.
The Heart♥the Heartlands event series included three months of events that showcased the Heartlands forest and the work of the community to protect and secure it. Events included guided hikes with co-hosts from the Keweenaw Hiking Trails Association and Michigan Tech’s Great Lakes Research Center; fall color viewing at Brockway Mountain with co-host Eagle Harbor Township; and an ATV slow ride of the Heartlands with the Keweenaw ATV Club as co-host.
Through in-person and virtual public meetings and a survey that gathered thousands of responses, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) collected your feedback on the nearly 10,000 acres of Heartlands it will purchase and manage along with the additional MDNR lands. This feedback will inform drafting of the MDNR General Management Plans, due in 2025, for both Fort Wilkins Historic State Park and the Keweenaw Point state-managed lands.
We look forward to continuing our work with the community in 2025. In the meantime, we always welcome your thoughts, questions or concerns at keweenaw@tnc.org.
We wish you and your loved ones a meaningful holiday season and a happy and prosperous new year.
November Heartlands public update meeting video and presentation available online
If you missed the last Heartlands public update meeting on November 12th, you can now access the recording and slideshow presentation here.
In the News
Daily Mining Gazette: KCF holds Keweenaw Gold dinner banquet
WLUC-TV: The Nature Conservancy provides Keweenaw Heartlands update after seeking public feedback
WLUC-TV: TNC addresses potential ‘Keweenaw Heartlands’ local governance