Saving America's Working Lands National Conference

April 23-25, 2025
Dallas, TX

SAVING AMERICA’S WORKING LANDS, a national conference hosted by American Farmland Trust, focuses on the threatened and irreplaceable land that America relies upon to grow food, fiber, and fuel, provide critical environmental benefits, and sustain rural communities and agricultural economies.

SAVING AMERICA’S WORKING LANDS is intended to meet growing demand for cutting-edge information about protecting and retaining U.S. agricultural land. Designed for new and seasoned conservation practitioners, agriculture industry representatives and service providers, researchers, planners, policymakers, farmers, and ranchers, the conference will feature three days of workshops, field trips, discussion groups, and conference sessions that elevate successes and respond to practitioner needs for approaches to save the land that sustains us.

Attend SAVING AMERICA’S WORKING LANDS to deepen your knowledge of agricultural land protection tools, discuss emerging issues and trends, and explore and elevate new ideas and strategies to save America’s working lands.

Conference Objectives:

• Grow the capacity of conservation and agriculture practitioners across the United States to do more to retain and protect working farm and ranch lands.

• Build the skills of new-to-the-field practitioners around the agricultural land protection toolbox.

• Address challenges and identify opportunities for new approaches and policies around agricultural land retention and protection.

• Identify and build momentum around strategies for quantifying economic, climate, and other benefits of agricultural land retention and protection.

• Highlight exciting and innovative approaches to incorporating climate, conservation, land access, farm transfer, and farm viability strategies with farm and ranch land protection.

Why should you attend Saving America’s Working Lands National Conference?

• Network & Engage: Farm and conservation organizations, planners, state and county agencies, researchers, land trusts, and more from around the country, working on farm and ranch land protection and retention are registering every day. Attend to network and engage in discussions with peers and colleagues from across the country to generate new ideas, solutions, and strategies, enabling you to bring fresh perspectives to your work.

• Learn & Develop: Top-notch speakers are being added to a full spectrum of sessions every day. Attend to network and hear stories about innovative approaches to farm and ranch land protection.

• Brainstorm & Strategize: There are four Discussion Sessions on the agenda. Instead of presentations from speakers, Discussion Sessions will have a designated facilitator to set the stage and moderate an open discussion among attendees. Attend to participate in conversations about the future.

• Restore & Regroup: You could use a break. Conference planners are working hard to create an atmosphere of calm and restoration. Attend to enjoy good meals with like minds, immerse yourself in a sustainable environment (the Fairmont-Dallas is amazing!), treat yourself to a field trip, grab a new headshot at the photo booth, and meet new friends.

NEW! Opportunities: (as of 2/26/2025)

• NEW! Table-top Exhibitor Opportunity

  • Responding to demand, we’ve decided to add a table-top exhibitor opportunity to the conference.

  • For $2500, exhibitors will receive:

    • One table (and chair!) located in the main ballroom where the plenaries and all meals will take place

    • One full conference pass valued at $750

    • Listing in the program

    • Listing on the conference app

  • Reach out to Beth Fraser ([email protected]) to secure your spot

• NEW! Student Pricing

  • The full conference price for students is $300

  • Students can provide a copy of their current student ID for a special discount code to use when registering

  • There is no student pricing for field trips

  • There is no student pricing one-day registration

  • Reach out to Beth Fraser ([email protected]) with a photo of your ID

• NEW! Group Discount

  • Purchase 3 full conference passes and get a 4th one for free

  • Applicable before and after the early bird date of March 14

  • Reach out to Beth Fraser ([email protected]) for more information

For members of the press interested in attending, please reach out to Lori Sallet ([email protected])

We’ve partnered with travel company, TripZero who both supplies discounted hotel rooms and offsets the carbon footprint created by our travel – at no cost to attendees. Once registered, a link to the portal to book rooms will be provided.