A vital 437-acre piece of the Paradise Valley landscape has been permanently protected through a voluntary conservation easement established by the Nickelson family in partnership with Northern Yellowstone Open Lands, a regional initiative of the Gallatin Valley Land Trust.

GVLT has reached a historic milestone in regional land conservation: 75,000 total acres of highly productive agricultural, wildlife-rich, and scenic open lands permanently protected across Gallatin, Park, and Madison counties.

2025 brought exciting wins and challenging setbacks in our efforts to support land conservation throughout the county. Learn more about the projects, the partnerships, and the people who make this work possible.

Read the December 2025 Montana Free Press article.

Private philanthropy has emerged as a critical driver in land conservation, helping protect productive agricultural, wildlife-rich, and scenic open lands.

Over 1,500 acres of highly scenic agricultural land in Paradise Valley’s stunning Mill Creek drainage will remain intact and undeveloped through a conservation easement established by Alan and Laurie Redfield and Sarah Nollemeyer, in partnership with GVLT’s Northern Yellowstone Open Lands initiative.

Robert and Valerie Anderson have partnered with GVLT’s Northern Yellowstone Open Lands initiative of Gallatin Valley Land Trust to conserve their 884-acre historic family ranch, located southwest of Livingston in the Trail Creek area.

In response to growing interest from Park County landowners, community members, and conservation partners, GVLT has launched Northern Yellowstone Open Lands—a conservation initiative based in Livingston, Montana.

GVLT has partnered with Rob Forstenzer to conserve his 546-acre Ferry Creek Ranch in Park County northeast of Livingston.

Arthur Blank established a conservation easement on his 8,800-acre Paradise Valley Ranch in partnership with the Gallatin Valley Land Trust.