Stewarding the Future: A Conversation with Andy Mossey of the Woodstock Land Conservancy

For Andy, the work has always been personal. A lifelong love of the outdoors and the simple freedom of public lands led him to advocacy. Over the years, he’s partnered with organizations such as the Catskill Center and the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, helping safeguard access to wild spaces and ensuring fragile ecosystems endure for generations to come.

Even now, when he’s not guiding the Conservancy or collaborating with land managers, Andy is rarely indoors. You’ll find him walking in the woods, hiking, cycling, backpacking and climbing in the Hudson Valley hills and the Catskill Mountains, exploring new trails and remote corners of the world. Always connected to the landscapes he works to protect.

That spirit of stewardship comes alive on May 16, when the Woodstock Land Conservancy hosts its largest annual fundraiser, the Vernal Fling—a celebration of spring, conservation, and the shared commitment to preserving the land we love.

Vernal Fling 2026
Saturday, 16 May 2026 | 3 PM – 6 PM
White Feather Farm
What better way to support this local gem the by getting tickets HERE.

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INSIDE+OUT is Upstate NY with Andy Mossey to learn more about his role at the Woodstock Land Conservancy (WLC) and what fuels his commitment to protecting and stewarding the land.

INSIDE+OUT: Andy, where are you originally from, and how did you wind up in the Hudson Valley?

Andy Mossey: I grew up just outside of New York’s Capital District in the village of Scotia. I spent as much of my childhood as possible outside. I would bike, ski, snowboard, climb, and hike close to home, but many of my bigger adventures happened in the Adirondacks. Those experiences shaped my perception of the world. For me; access to the outdoors was essential for understanding who I was as a person and what I wanted to do with my life.

After living all over the US for many years, my wife and I moved back to her hometown, Accord, in 2018. We found the Hudson Valley and Catskills region to be a perfect blend of some of our favorite things, including access to the outdoors, family, food, art, music, and community. We were able to easily begin the process of growing our own roots here. We’ve been back for eight years and love it.

For those not familiar, tell us about the Woodstock Land Conservancy, what you do, history, and mission.

Andy Mossey: The Woodstock Land Conservancy (WLC) is the eastern Catskills’ land trust. We have three primary foci at the conservancy — land protection, environmental education, and environmental advocacy. We focus this work within our service area, which includes the towns of Woodstock, Hurley, Olive, Saugerties, Ulster, and Kingston. Folks may be most familiar with our organization through our preserves, including Sloan Gorge and Israel Wittman Sanctuary, or through our work to fight inappropriate development, such as our work with the Stop Zena Development coalition.

WLC was founded in 1988, when the community of Woodstock organized to protect special places like Zena Cornfield. The cornfield was threatened by development, and the community feared the iconic view of Overlook Mountain would be lost forever if the field were developed. During the successful purchase of the cornfield and other parcels in Woodstock, WLC was formed. With it came a commitment to protecting and preserving the open lands, forests, water resources, scenic areas, and historic sites in Woodstock and the surrounding area.

What led you to your work in land conservation?

Andy Mossey: My career in conservation came through my love for the outdoors. In college, my studies focused on leadership in technical outdoor environments, such as ski mountaineering and climbing. Alongside my enduring love for the outdoors, I began to notice that protected parks and conserved areas were becoming consistently threatened by energy or development interests. For example, I felt a lot of confusion about why a national monument could be stripped of its federal or state land designation and then leased to private interests that drill for natural gas. When I learned that I could lend my voice to protecting public lands and make a difference, I got into conservation work. Since that initial decision to work in this field, I have worked for national, regional, and local nonprofits. It was one of the best decisions of my life, as I find this work incredibly meaningful.

At WLC, there is no better feeling than successfully acquiring land for conservation and/or recreation, because we know that protecting land means habitat, climate, and the community also benefit. These land protections are permanent, and it feels great to know the land will remain protected for generations to come.

What are the most challenging and the most rewarding aspects of running a land trust?

Andy Mossey: The most challenging part of running a small nonprofit is making sure we have the funding to keep working toward our mission. Running our operations is a continuous effort, and we are always looking for people who want to support us, align with our mission and help keep the lights on.

Woodstock Land Conservancy is an accredited land trust, a designation that continually pushes us to do better. Accreditation means that we are held to high standards, and those standards challenge us to adapt to evolving requirements. Even though the process is challenging, we believe accreditation is valuable because it gives our community confidence in our ethical, mission-oriented, and organized practices.

The most rewarding aspect of running Woodstock Land Conservancy is working with so many amazing people in our community. We work with community members and volunteers to achieve our goals, all of which directly impact our local environment. We also work on advocacy initiatives in coalitions to ensure our voice is just one of many standing up for environmental protection.

Two of these coalitions are focused on big goals: One is our work to connect Kingston to the Ashokan Rail Trail. The other is our work to protect a large forest from a major development. All in all, whenever we make meaningful strides towards achieving our mission, I feel a great sense of pride, but there’s no doubt our advocacy work is complex.

For example, WLC has been advocating for trail connectivity along the full length of the Ulster County-owned U&D Corridor, which is almost 40 miles, for more than a decade. Working in collaboration with like-minded organizations and a large number of dedicated – and vocal – community members, we helped to win passage for what is now the Ashokan Rail Trail. It opened in 2019 and still attracts more than 140,000 visitors a year, according to the county’s tourism data.

Now we are working in collaboration with others to encourage the county legislature to continue the trail on the only part of the U&D corridor that is not wide enough for both railroad tracks and a rail trail. It’s not even two miles in length, but this small piece of real estate on the corridor – named the “undesignated section” – is the linchpin to connecting the entire U&D Corridor to the Empire State Trail. It’s an incredible dream that will take years to bring to fruition, but the county legislature’s decision – likely this summer – will either keep the dream alive or dash it forever. Adding trail connectivity to 1.7 miles could connect 700 miles of trail all over the state of New York!

What successes are you most proud of?

Andy Mossey: Wow, where to begin? Woodstock Land Conservancy has been protecting lands in the Eastern Catskills for almost 40 years. Since I joined as Executive Director, we have added another 220 acres to our protection. This is a combination of conservation easements and land we own, all open to the public. Our most recent acquisition in 2025 is a project that helps us achieve a much larger goal than the initial land acquisition. This 65-acre parcel was a critical link in our effort to create a conservation corridor that will one day connect the Catskills Visitor Center in Mt. Tremper to the summit of Mt Tobias. In the future, we hope to acquire other parcels on the mountain to complete this trail project.

We have also been leaders of advocacy initiatives in efforts to protect the Bluestone Wild Forest, connect Kingston to the Ashokan Rail Trail, argue for conservation efforts in the Winston Farm development project, and, of course, protect the Zena Highwoods forest – including Woodstock’s Critical Environmental Area, through our work in the Stop Zena Development coalition.

Most importantly, I’m very proud to work alongside a solid team at the land conservancy. Our board is made up of professionals and community members who enable us as staff to be effective in our work. The staff at the land conservancy is truly an all-star team. My colleagues, though few in number, bring decades of experience, unique skill sets, positive attitudes, and a constant desire to make all aspects of our work more effective.

What programs are you currently focused on for the Woodstock Land Conservancy?

Andy Mossey: As Executive Director, I am tapped into all the programs we offer at WLC. From our land stewardship work to environmental education to environmental advocacy to all of the pieces that enable those programs to shine and be effective, I am involved in some way. It’s a lot to manage, and, at times, the work that gets the most of my attention isn’t the most exciting. It’s all of the pieces of project management, emails, internal processes, and so on that require significant time. It’s nice to break away from what one of our staff members calls “BBI – boring but important” – tasks to make sure we are celebrating the wins and having fun, too.

What is your biggest concern, something that keeps you up at night?

Andy Mossey: My biggest concern is the destruction facing our environment. Everywhere I look, it seems like “progress” can only mean one thing: rampant development or the next technology. The side effect of all of this development is that our environment is getting completely wrecked by overconsumption.

What helps in all of this dread is knowing that the work we do at WLC truly makes a difference. We are protecting biodiversity, carbon sequestering trees and plants, and diverse ecosystems. If all of us on the planet today hope to leave our kids an Earth with clean air and water, we need to act. WLC helps me do just that. Every day, the work we do at the local level helps protect land, water, wildlife, plants, and humans.

“My biggest concern is the destruction facing our environment. Everywhere I look, it seems like “progress” can only mean one thing: rampant development or the next technology. The side effect of all of this development is that our environment is getting completely wrecked by overconsumption.” — Andy Mossey

You have a big fundraiser, Vernal Fling, coming up in May. Could you tell us more about it?

Andy Mossey: Vernal Fling is always so fun! It’s a celebration of Spring, the changing of seasons, and the community all coming back together after a cold winter. Vernal Fling is our largest annual fundraiser, and the support we receive goes directly into our work at WLC. If you are curious about WLC, there is no better way to get to know our work and our team than by coming to Vernal Fling and meeting us in person.

This year, it’s going to take place on May 16th at White Feather Farm. We will be honoring one of the last working farms in Woodstock and the multi-generational family, the Longyears, who own and operate it, with the William R. Ginsberg Stewardship Award. We are also launching a new award this year, the Emerging Leader Award, and honoring artist and advocate Zoe Keller. Honoring exceptional members of the community is one of the highlights of Vernal Fling.

Tickets can be purchased here or on the WLC website.

What makes living in the Hudson Valley special for you?

Andy Mossey: The Hudson Valley has it going on. We have mountains, rivers, streams, forests, art, and culture. In just one day, I can be in the middle of the forest looking at sensitive flora, then go into town for an excellent meal, all before heading to a superb venue to see a world-renowned musician. This place is special, and we are so lucky to live in a place with so much variety.

What impact does your organization have on your community?

Andy Mossey: This question might be better answered by the community. If I had to answer, though, I would say that every aspect of our work aims to help our community and the environment. From special places for people to visit and access nature to free environmental programming, we are proud to say there is something for everyone at WLC.

You collaborate with many local organizations on a variety of issues. Tell us a bit about this and how they come about?

Andy Mossey: I’ve spoken already about our work within coalitions. We believe advocacy is best done in collaboration, amplifying our voice and the voices of neighbors and other organizations that care about the same issue. Sometimes we are approached by a community member to engage on an issue. Other times, we are the ones reaching out to like-minded partners.

Several vital organizations are working on environmental issues in the Hudson Valley, and we know there’s strength in numbers. When several organizations with similar goals and objectives collaborate rather than compete, nature wins.

What local businesses do you rely on to be successful?

Andy Mossey: We are pleased to have several local businesses that sponsor Vernal Fling each year, provide us with nonprofit pricing on supplies, and serve as vendors when needed. From our local accountant to our trail-building partners to hardware stores that have the stewardship tools and equipment we need, we strive to support Hudson Valley businesses and are honored when they support us.

What is missing in the area that you wish we had?

Andy Mossey: I understand the need for affordable living options throughout the area, and I don’t subscribe to the false notion that all environmentalists are anti-development. I am a fan of smart development. There are environmentally friendly building practices that can and should be utilized throughout the Hudson Valley. There are opportunities to be environmentally sensitive while also increasing the affordable housing inventory.

Who or what inspires you personally?

Andy Mossey: I am inspired by many people and organizations engaged in this work. One that immediately comes to mind is the Thompkins Foundation. It has protected significant land in Chile and Argentina, something like more than 15 million acres. The group also works to rehabilitate and reintroduce pumas and other big cats into protected areas.

What are some of your favorite ways to unwind and unplug when you are not working?

Andy Mossey: I’m an avid skier, rock climber, hiker, cyclist, and more. My wife and I both love the outdoors, which makes my choice of career pretty easy to see. I unwind and unplug by literally unplugging – heading outside into nature, preferably on a mountain, and leaving screens behind.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

Andy Mossey: I’d like to be able to control time. I would love to go back in time or see the future – find ways to know how our actions today affect future outcomes for conservation. Plus, as the leader of a small but intrepid staff, I’d appreciate the ability to pause time and never miss a deadline. That would be amazing!

What is your current state of mind?

Andy Mossey: Busy!

Photos courtesy of Woodstock Land Conservancy

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