Declared May 2024:
Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Expansion California 
  5,542 hectares, 13,696 acres

Art into Acres is an artist-founded, non-profit environmental initiative focusing on land conservation. The process involves an artwork, often a few feet in size, that is donated by an artist or artist collective in support of new large-scale environmental protection. The collaboration has supported millions of acres of new permanent protected areas. Founded in 2017, this initiative assists artists and art institutions in engaging internationally-recognized locally-led conservation projects, in collaboration with matching funds partners. Both art and land conservation are about legacy - what we leave behind for the future. Both are artifact. One is the visual of a moment in time, the other is the visual of all time compounded. The first donor to Art into Acres was Agnes Gund, founder of Art for Justice, and President Emerita and Life Trustee of the Museum of Modern Art and Chairman of its International Council. She donated a work on paper, that went to support the expansion of a National Park in Puerto Rico.

The sites selected for conservation are often Intact Forest Landscapes, about 125,000 acres or larger, to support biodiversity reproduction. Scale, as taught by Dr. Thomas Lovejoy and Atossa Soltani, is a necessary component of thriving biodiverse communities. The landscapes are generally without roads, and are uninhabited. At times, smaller locations are protected when they are expansions of prior conserved areas, or they create protected corridors between conserved areas.  Often, the conservation supports indigenous communities titling their own homesteads. The protection approaches that are supported include the creation of Indigenous Protected Areas and a range of IUCN 1-5 areas such as National Parks, Regional Parks. Art into Acres supports the due diligence reviews, matching funds arrangements, quarterly meetings with partners, protected area declaration audits and donor education. Artists receive documents of the completed project to further their personal, studio and family's education and thinking.

We are grateful to conservation partners including Andes Amazon Fund, the Wyss Foundation, re:wild, One Earth, the Nature Conservancy, RESOLVE, Nature and Culture International, Fundaeco, Cassidy & Associates, Tuleyome, and more. Locally-led, locally-directed and locally-requested conservation is the focus of this work. Land conservation best practices and approaches are different in each country, language and legal support system: no two conservation projects are the same and all benefit from introspection, patience, inclusivity and dialogue. The funds raised herein support diverse communities in conserving the lands on which they have historically lived. The legal, administrative and travel costs are funded by an annual donation from The Children's Trust; all artwork donations are restricted to land conservation grants. The non-profit name was developed at the Patagonia Tools for Grassroots Activists Conference in 2017.

Locations are assessed for biodiversity, betadiversity, scale, intactness, below and above-ground carbon significance, biodiversity significance, post-declaration management, connectivity to other conserved areas for migration corridors and community requests following a two-year or greater due diligence period. The organization works with a series of national and international partners. Projects have an implementing team of two or more conservation non-profit partners per location -- with all projects organized by local leadership. Re:wild (originally Global Wildlife Conservation) has supported the initiative from inception first through fiscal sponsorship and currently through active granting. The majority of engaged projects are indigenous reserves or national and regional designation projects and all projects are locally-led or community-led.

Whether it is permanent forest conservation supporting indigenous communities declaring a permanent protected area (or governments supporting this depending on land tenure) or National Park declaration -- both grant avenues fund the legal support, biodiversity surveys, land tenure surveys, mapping, signage, formal declaration and a management support endowment. A minority of projects are land-purchase projects, wherein, the land is purchased at market cost for permanent conservation and protected in concurrent mechanisms: privately held in local title by a land trust set up for the location, permanent national or regional declaration status, registration in National conserved places (or equivalent), easement held by a local conservation organization, and lastly, the carbon rights of the parcel are dedicated to the location. These protection mechanisms, in addition to land ownership, arrive at a protected conservation status. 

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Completed Locations

Richardson National Park, Australia: 131,900 hectares, 325,932 acres
Maya Corridor Land Trust, Belize: 12,082 hectares, 29,856 acres
Bajo Paraguá Municipal Protected Area, Bolivia: 983,006 hectares, 2,429,061 acres
Bajo Paraguá-Concepción Municipal Conservation Area, Bolivia: 154,368 hectares, 381,452 acres
Guanay (Puente Amazonica) Municipal Conservation Areas, Bolivia: 42,650 hectares, 105,392 acres
Fuente de Vida Municipal Protected Area, Bolivia: 7,715 hectares, 19,065 acres
Teoponte (Dowara Kanda Tech Uyapï) Municipal Conservation Area, Bolivia: 24,754 hectares, 61,168 acres
Cuchilla de San Juan Regional Protected Area expansion, Colombia: 18,613 hectares, 45,994 acres
Quilanga Municipal Conservation Area, Ecuador: 10,632 hectares, 26,273 acres
Espíndola Municipal Protected Area, Ecuador: 16,538 hectares, 40,866 acres
Aguarico Water Protection Area, Ecuador: 103,000 hectares, 254,519 acres
Machángara Tomebamba Wildlife Refuge, Ecuador: 24,958 hectares, 61,673 acres
Loja Municipal Municipal Conservation Area and Expansion, Ecuador: 74,050 hectares, 182,982 acres
Sucúa Municipal Conservation and Sustainable Use Area, Ecuador: 17,741 hectares, 43,840 acres
Esmeraldas Provincial Conservation and Sustainable Use Area, Ecuador: 213,758 hectares, 528,207 acres
Tarímiat Pujutaí Nuṉka (Territory of Well Being), Ecuador: 1,237,395 hectares, 3,057,671 acres
Quito Municipal Conservation and Sustainable Use Areas, Ecuador: 120,722 hectares, 298,310 acres
Quito Provincial Conservation and Sustainable Use Areas, Ecuador: 274,281 hectares, 183,552 acres
Rio Negro Sopladora National Park, Ecuador: 30,616 hectares, 75,654 acres
Yanuncay-Zhucay Municipal Conservation Area, Ecuador: 26,965 hectares, 66,633 acres 
Siete Sabias-Esperanza de Vida, Colombia: 30,398 hectares, 75,116 acres
Yavari Tapiche Indigenous Reserve, Peru: 1,092,651 hectares, 2,700,000 acres
Chuyapi Urusayhua Regional Conservation Area, Peru: 80,191 hectares, 198,156 acres
Huayhuash National Landscape Reserve, Peru: 67,590 hectares, 167,018 acres
Mt. Diablo, Oregon, United States: 48,074 hectares, 118,794 acres
Pueblos Mountains and Trout Creek Wilderness, Oregon, United States: 124,238 hectares, 307,000 acres
Berryessa Snow Mountain Monument Expansion, California, United States: 5,542 hectares, 13,696 acres
Burma Rim, Oregon, United States: 36,582 hectares, 90,397 acres

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In-Process Locations

Brazil: Indigenous Protected Areas: 1,000,000 hectares, 2,471,053 acres
Brazil: OECM's Amazonia: 12,000,000 hectares, 29,652,645 acres
Bolivia: Suapi Municipal Protected Area: 2,782 hectares, 6,875 acres
Bolivia: Ilampu Municipal Protected Area: 1,715 hectares, 4,238 acres
Bolivia: Ingavi Municipal Protected Area: 120,065 hectares, 296,687 acres
Bolivia: Porongo Municipal Conservation Area: 4,000 hectares, 10,000 acres
Bolivia: San Rafael Municipal Protected Area Expansion: 264,323 hectares, 653,156 acres
Bolivia: Sama Biological Reserve Expansion: 36,426 hectares, 90,010 acres
Bolivia: Tahuamanu-Orthon Departmental Natural Heritage Area: 280,129 hectares, 692,212 acres
Bolivia: Mandiyurenda Municipal Protected Area: 83,972 hectares, 207,500 acres
Canada: Northern Yukon Indigenous Protected Area: 850,000 hectares, 2,100,395 acres
Chile: Cape Froward National Park: 505,857 hectares, 1,250,000 acres
Colombia: Manacacias National Park: 68,180 hectares, 168,476 acres
Colombia: Serranía De San Lucas National Integrated Management District: 405,908 hectares, 1,003,021 acres
Colombia: Cerro del Duende Regional Protected Area: 91,000 hectares, 224,866 acres
Colombia: Collectively-titled Indigenous lands - Resguardos: 928,763 hectares, 2,295,000 acres
Colombia: San Juan Delta Marine Regional Integrated Management Area: 160,000 hectares, 397,840 acres
Ecuador: Sevilla de Oro Municipal Reserve: 20,000 hectares, 49,420 acres
Guatemala: Cerro Amay National Protected Area: 12,949 hectares, 32,000 acres
Honduras: Uchapa-Pimienta Protected Area: 16,061.85 hectares, 39,689.89 acres
Nicaragua: Awaltara Indigenous Conservation Area: 150,543 hectares, 372,000 acres
Peru: Aguas Calientes Regional Conservation Area: 101,931 hectares, 251,876 acres
Peru: Osomayo - Milpo Regional Conservation Area: 73,711 hectares, 182,144 acres
Peru: Medio Putumayo Regional Conservation Area: 399,738 hectares, 987,774 acres
Peru: Cutervo Regional Conservation Area: 19,357 hectares, 47,832 acres
Peru: Selva Verde – Santo Domingo Regional Conservation Area: 80,000 hectares, 197,684 acres
Peru: Tapiche y Blanco Regional Conservation Area: 265,841 hectares, 656,909 acres
Peru: Rontoccocha Regional Conservation Area: 17,000 hectares, 42,008 acres 
Peru: Ausangate Private Conservation Area: 12,000 hectares, 29,653 acres 
Peru: Ere Campuya Regional Protected Area: 700,896 hectares, 1,731,952 acres
Peru: Lomas y Tillandsiales de Tacna Regional Conservation Area: 161,000 hectares, 397,840 acres
Suriname: Southern Indigenous Protected Areas: 7,284,341 hectares, 18,000,000 acres

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Artist Partners

The initiative has supported conservation through the donations of artwork by key international cultural producers: Ed Ruscha donated by Agnes Gund, Chloe Wise, Ahmet Civelek, Zaria Forman, David Adamo, Rosemary Laing, Nathlie Provosty, Alain Richard, Shirazeh Houshiary, Darren Bader, Alex Hubbard, Joe Andoe, Isabella Kirkland, Tiffany Bozic, Loie Hollowell, Keltie Ferris, Camille Henrot, Rashid Johnson, George Condo, Anicka Yi, Max Hooper Schneider, The Haas Brothers, Anish Kapoor, Idris Khan, Olivier Mosset, Rashid Johnson, Ben Thorp Brown, David Altmejd, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Cindy Sherman, Elizabeth Jaeger, The Bruce High Quality Foundation, Wyatt Kahn, Louis Eisner, Jacob Kassay, Robert Longo, Mungo Thomson, Cheyney Thompson, Sterling Ruby, The Haas Brothers, Korakrit Arunanondchai, G.T. Pellizi, Leelee Kimmel, Jonas Wood, Ann Craven, Emily Mae Smith, Jenny Holzer, Rashid Johnson, Jackson Pollock donated by Justus Striebich, Dana Schutz, Madeline Hollander, Josh Kline, Shawn Demarest, Gary Simmons, Julian Charrière, Carol Bove, Angel Otero, Michelle Blade, Sam Bornstein, Tiffany Bozic, Sean Donnola, Julia Jo, Alteronce Gumby, C'naan Hamburger, Keiran Brennan Hinton, Esteban Ramón Pérez, Lily Stockman, Julia Felsenthal, Julian Charrière, Jane Rosen, rosenclaire, Mika Rottenberg.

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Museum, Gallery and Institutional Partners

The non-profit has supported conservation in collaboration with the following individuals, galleries, institutions and museums:
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Micki Meng Gallery, Alex Berggruen Gallery, Casey Kaplan Gallery, Charles Moffett, David Zwirner, Diane Rosenstein, Fraenkel Gallery, Frank Elbaz Gallery, Grimm Gallery, Hannah Hoffman, Hauser & Wirth Gallery, Heroes Gallery, James Cohan Gallery, Jessica Silverman Gallery, Kate MacGarry Gallery, Marianne Boesky Gallery, Parker Gallery, PPOW Gallery, De Young Museum, German Environmental Authority, Guggenheim New York, Hamburger Kunsthalle Museum, Henry Museum, Hirshhorn Museum, Institute of Contemporary Art Miami, Bonn Museum of Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto, Museum of Modern Art PS1, San Jose Museum of Art, ARTA Shipping, ArtForum Magazine, Barder.art, California College of Art, K21 Collection by Kanon, Sandy Heller Advisory, Sutton Communications, Striebich Collection, Zlot Buell Advisory, Alison Valentine Studio, Andrew Kachel, Davide Balula Studio, In honor of Don Carr, In honor of Donald Moffett, In honor of Elaine T. Ault, Erin M. Riley Studio, In honor of Jessica Jackson Hutchins, Jonah Jacobs Studio, Kai Patricio, Kara J. Shaw, Maddie Rose Hills, N. Dash Studio, In honor of Dr. Nelson Bingham, Nicholas Cinque, Robin Williams Studio, Zaria Forman Studio, Tate Modern Museum, Tate London Museum, McCormick Foundation, Conor O'Neil, the Beyeler Foundation, Museum Frieder Burda, Museum of Old and New Art.

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Philanthropic Partnerships with Private Foundations

Partnerships with private foundations for matching funds is core to our capacity to engage the cultural community in conservation. All artwork donations are restricted to matching funds agreements. The non-profit overhead and operating costs are paid for by the nonprofit's board of advisors. As a part of the organization's commitment to the sustainability of the cultural sector. Art into Acres has provided inaugural fiscal sponsorship support to Art + Climate Action, Artists Commit, Barder.art, and the Gallery Climate Coalition.

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Strategic Climate Funds

Strategic Climate Funds support began with a novel partnership with Galleries Commit and have continued on this website's Strategic Climate Funds page or by conserving land at Conserve, which is a beta project of Art into Acres. For a white paper on Strategic Climate Funds as an approach instead of carbon offsets, please read here.