You could call Nina Fisher Scenic Rivers Land Trust’s most valuable volunteer. She easily deserves that moniker because of what she’s accomplished as the nonprofit organization’s board president over the past four years.
And even though the 62-year-old Fisher’s term as president is up this April, she plans to remain as committed as ever to Scenic Rivers and its mission of land conservation.
“I won’t be saying goodbye and disappearing,” the Annapolis resident says. “I will be involved. I think it’s so important to stay involved especially in the era of climate change. It will take a lot of effort to preserve our forests, which are critical. I will also be on some of the committees and certainly help out with our fundraising events.”
Fisher is modest by nature. She tends to deflect praise and insists that everything she has accomplished has actually been part of a team effort.
“If you talk to her, she is pretty low key,” says Sarah Knebel, the organization’s executive director. “The amount of energy she’s put into Scenic Rivers has been amazing. You know from what she does that she deeply cares about promoting land conservation. Whenever she is at an event, she’s constantly talking to people about land conservation and what Scenic Rivers does.”
Knebel and her co-workers admire Fisher for her impressive professional background and expertise.
Fisher spent eight years as a senior scientist on projects under contract to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, as well as other state and federal agencies involved in the bay’s restoration. She also worked as a science writer, editor, and college instructor.
She’s put all her experience to work for Scenic Rivers since joining the board in 2012. She spearheaded the two-year effort to get national accreditation, has been instrumental in planning the organization’s main fundraiser, recruiting sponsors, and writing, proofing, and editing just about every kind of document that comes into or goes out of Scenic Rivers.
“Before we had a communications person come on board last year, we needed a lot of help with design and the literature we put out,” Knebel says. “She was really great at proof reading. She has looked at a lot of different documents and really worked hard on them so we could put out some really quality stuff.”
Fisher, who holds a bachelors in geology and biology from Tufts University and has masters in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia, sees Scenic Rivers’ mission as vital.
“The pressure to develop land in the county is just so high,” she explains. “You could easily have developers dictating which areas end up being developed. For families that have owned land for generations, the financial incentives are just so strong. If someone comes along and offers them a million or two, it’s hard to turn that away. We come up with methods to preserve and protect the land.”
One of her most challenging projects was securing national accreditation. Getting approval for national accreditation through the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. That alone took countless hours and required the compilation of documentation to ensure that the organization’s processes and procedures met the commission’s standards.
“As president, she worked with me to make sure we had all the proper policies in place that were required, and she updated our current policies,” Knebel says. “She did a lot of work in writing and editing all those materials, as well as changing nearly our entire record system from paper to digital. We reorganized all 50 files.”
Fisher adds, “It’s a significant accomplishment for a small land trust to be able to do that. That shows you are operating at the highest level of land trust alliance standards and practices.”
Fisher, a certified Master Watershed Steward and Master Naturalist, is a driving force in planning and coordinating the organization’s events. One of these is Walk for the Woods, an annual celebration in April. For this year’s event, families will get to explore in the permanently protected Bacon Ridge National Area in Crownsville.
Another important event was last year’s Conservation Celebration, which marked Scenic Rivers’ 30th anniversary with a fundraising gala. It sold out and raised about $20,000.
“She was one of the most active planners on the event,” Knebel recalls of the Conservation Celebration. “She made sure all the decorations were there and that we got enough sponsors. She sold a lot of tickets. She and another board member made pottery and put plants in them for giveaways. I think they made 130 pieces of pottery.”
Fisher enthusiastically looks forward to Lifeline 100, a bike event October 4th for all ages that includes lengthy rides around the county. Scenic Rivers recently became a partner with Bike Anne Arundel.
“She has been the cornerstone of, like, everything that has happened in the last couple of years,” says Edmee Geis, another one of the organization’s board members. “She is invaluable and a great leader. She gets people to show up.”
