Episode 19: 10X Conservation in Silicon Valley with the Peninsula Open Space Trust

Solving Climate, Naturally

Walter Moore (President) and Peter Cowan (Director of Conservation Science) @ Peninsula Open Space Trust

In this episode, we speak with Walter Moore and Peter Cowan on the leadership team at the Peninsula Open Space Trust, the engine for conservation of the natural landscapes around and within Silicon Valley. POST is a uniquely successful land trust and has helped conserve over 80,000 acres of land in one of the most biodiverse (and most expensive) regions in the world.

Walter brings unique perspective to POST’s journey, as an expert in land conservation and law who has served as POST’s President since 2011 and as a volunteer and general counsel since 1993. Walter is also a founding member of the Land Trust Alliance Leadership Council, a board member of the California Council of Land Trusts, and the former board charge of the Bay Area Open Space Council. Peter has served as POST’s Director of Conservation Science , and has held conservation leadership roles at Peninsula Open Space Trust, Save the Redwoods League and with the Environmental Quality Committee of the California State Senate.

In this episode, we cover a wide range of topics including:

- Overview of POST

- Walter’s personal journey at POST over three decades

- POST’s history and creation, how POST works with Midpeninsula Open Space District in the Bay Area, and the rise of land trusts in the US across different regions

- How land trusts work, and how POST’s acquisition process works

- How POST has mobilized capital towards conservation at scale, and how funding sources for conservation have evolved over time

- Thumbnail sketch of POST’s lands under conservation and framework for conservation prioritization

- POST’s conservation approach, and how it relates to the evolution of conservation philosophies over the last few decades writ large

- A pioneering approach to climate resilience credits, taking inspiration from the carbon markets

- POST’s long-term goals for conservation and restoration – and why conservation is a verb requiring continued effort

- POST’s success drivers, as a uniquely effective example of a land trust

- Lightning round – Walter and Peter’s favorite POST trails and projects, books, and much more!

Want to learn more? Check out these resources:

POST’s Hiking Map

Note: Walter’s favorite trail is Tunitas Creek Beach, which was recently named Don Horsley County Park at Tunitas Creek Beach by the San Mateo County Supervisors.

POST’s 2024 Impact Report

“Whose Conservation?” by Georgina Mace (2014)

“The Social Conquest of Earth” by EO Wilson

“James” by Percival Everett”

Episode recorded on: July 26, 2024