Rural Land Bank Learning Exchange

(1) Any rural land bank or land banking program; (2) located in an area where property vacancy, abandonment, and disinvestment are a significant challenge to the community; that (3) is a member of the National Land Bank Network is eligible to apply. Priority will be given to applicants who demonstrate engagement with residents and other community partners.

Not an NLBN member yet? Join for free here.

Your delegation can include up to four participants, including the lead applicant. Land bank staff, land bank board members, land bank residents and community advisory committee members, and other community partners (elected officials, local government partners, nonprofits, etc.) should be considered as possible delegation members. Ideally, the delegation should be comprised of at least one land bank staff member alongside other community members who can meaningfully collaborate with you to tackle your community’s VAD challenges.

For the Rural Land Bank Learning Exchange, we are defining “rural” as a non-urban geographic service area of a land bank or land banking program with a population of less than 50,000.

Applications are due Wednesday, March 20, 2024 by 5 PM ET.

Selected participants will be notified by April 8, 2024.

Participants will be required to:

• Attend a “meet and greet” kick-off call on May 14, 2024.
• Participate in a two and a half day on-site learning exchange in Summer 2024 (location and exact dates to-be-determined).
• Participate in a virtual learning session in Summer/Fall 2024 (date and time to-be-determined)
• Attend the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference October 9-11, 2024 and the onsite participant gathering.
• Participate in a year-end wrap-up call on Wednesday, December 4, 2024.
• Participate in up to three follow-up surveys and/or phone calls following completion of the learning exchange and the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference.

The learning exchange will take place over two and a half days in Summer 2024 in the community of one of the participating land banks. Exact dates will be selected based on participant availability.

The learning exchange will offer:

• Presentations from experts in the land banking field, customized based on the interests of selected participants.
• Discussions between participants on topics pertinent to rural land banks, including programming, operations, funding, and board governance.
• A mobile workshop, visiting work on the ground and project sites of the local land bank or land banking program and community partners.
• Ample opportunities to learn, share, and connect with staff and partners from other rural land banks.

The Rural Land Bank Learning Exchange is free of charge to all participants. NLBN will cover travel, lodging, and on-site meals.

The application can be found in the NLBN Member Portal.