In 1977, a group of concerned and passionate Colorado Springs residents banded together to form the William J. Palmer Parks Foundation in order to establish and protect public open spaces and parks in the Front Range. Today, Palmer Land Trust is one of the fifteen largest land trusts in the country based upon conserved acreage easement holdings (there are approximately 1,700 land trusts in the United States), and it is one of the country’s first 100 nationally accredited land trusts.

Our mission is to protect Southern Colorado's lands for present and future generations. Since our grassroots beginning in 1977, we have protected 105,000 acres of working farms and ranches, signature landscapes and scenic corridors, and public recreation open spaces in a 10-county region.