Who decides that a Wal-mart is moving in down the street? Or that a residential developer will be allowed to drain a marshland? If you’re curious about how the government works and want to make a positive (and perceptible) change in your community, working for a land trust organization might be for you. As the executive director of the Saratoga Plan, Alane Ball runs a non-profit organization that works to promote “smart growth” and resource conservation in Saratoga County, New York.

When Alane Ball became a homeowner in a rural community, she quickly became interested in preserving the many beauties of the area that had attracted her in the first place. She volunteered on a local land trust board and learned the ins and outs of local government zoning. She studied for a master’s degree in Environmental Management and worked as a regional director of development for The Nature Conservancy, an ecological protection agency, raising funds and environmental awareness. Alane eventually got a job with the Open Space Project, an organization that identified and protected “natural, scenic, cultural, and recreational resources” of Saratoga Springs. The organization gained a reputation for taking on developers and local government—and winning. The Open Space Project pooled their money and merged with another Saratoga land trust to create the Saratoga Plan last year. With more money, they were able to hire Alane as the executive director and give their organization a higher profile that might help to get their projects implemented. “It’s about promoting smart growth and preserving a unique sense of place,” Alane says.

One recent example of her work with The Saratoga Plan is a small apple orchard that overlooks the nearby Hudson River as well as a historic battleground—the non-profit has entered into a partnership with several other groups including a historical society in order to purchase the farmers’ development rights. The Saratoga Plan also creates pedestrian and bike trails, nature walks, and accepts donations of land that meet their resource criteria and operate the tracts as nature preserves.

Volunteering is probably the best experience you can get if you’d like to work in this field, Alane advises. You don't need a specific major,even--Alane majored in Art History. More specifically, communication skills are key, and “Hamilton does a great job preparing its students in that department.” A great boon towards working for a land trust is knowledge of the technology—basic computer skills, of course, but also the GPS software that is used to evaluate terrain. Most important, however, is a passion to maintain and improve the community and the surrounding world. “I love this job,” Alane says, “I’ve had jobs open up for me elsewhere, but I love Saratoga and want to develop this organization.”