Ice Age Trail Alliance (IATA)
OUTREACH
- Celebrated 60 years of IATA supporting the trail. More than 300 community members and volunteers gathered in August at Ice Age Trail Days in Cross Plains, WI, both the headquarters of the Ice Age Trail Alliance and a designated Ice Age Trail Community. The event showcased a trail building project constructing one mile of new trail, a farm-to-table community dinner, workshops, and guided hikes.
- Welcomed five new Ice Age Trail Communities.
- Partnered with 19 school districts in 2018 for Saunters program to engage 2,390 youth and educators (2,171 students, 219 educators/adults) with nature and the trail through hikes, service learning, and a backpacking trip.
- Kicked off a new pilot program, From the Inside Out, which works to engage urban populations with natural space and increase diversity in Alliance supporters by partnering with established and trusted community centers located in the Madison, WI area. Changing who we are, the services we provide, and how we talk about the trail will be done through a series of conversations and events that bring underserved and underrepresented populations to the table.
- Increased exposure of Trail Safe! safety videos on the IATR website with over 1,100 unique views.
PROTECTION
- IATA and partners protected an additional three miles of trail via six land transactions.
- Acquired two properties near John Muir’s boyhood home near Ennis (Fountain) Lake.
- Secured a 40-acre parcel atop the terminal moraine in the ever-growing Dane County. The heavily wooded property was purchased by the City of Madison, WI with the assistance of Dane County and helps buffer the city’s own advancement, thereby creating a green belt for a future section of the trail.
CAPACITY
- Completed the majority of IATA’s identified priorities during the first full year of its current strategic plan.
- Committed to expanding IATA’s national headquarters in Cross Plains, WI, which is near completion and now in use.
- Over the next couple of years, IATA expects to add two to three full-time equivalents to support its expanding programmatic work in support of its volunteers and mission.
- Set volunteerism records with both individuals (2,620) and cumulative hours (81,999).
- New Ice Age Trail Superintendent, Eric Gabriel, selected in fall 2018.
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Ice Age Trail Alliance office addition. Photo Credit: Mike Wollmer, IATA.
