Ithaca College Natural Lands
Ten years old in 2014!
Ithaca College owns 560 acres of natural lands managed as a four-parcel conservation reserve system by students, faculty and staff.
Established in 2004, Ithaca College Natural Lands (or ICNL) has built a strong, positive presence on campus during its first ten years. All ICNL operations now follow a formal long-term plan written by students and approved by the College-wide ICNL Committee. More courses every year use the Natural Lands as their outdoor classroom, reaffirming the overarching value of the reserves as educational working landscapes. The core team of students managing the Natural Lands on a day-to-day basis now has 20+ members, with paid interns mentoring apprentices enrolled for course credit in the Student Intern Training Program. The ICNL Staff collaborates widely across the campus community, involving members from several Schools and student organizations. The projects underway on ICNL are diverse, ranging from ecological research to environmental education to senior volunteer outreach to trail building and maintenance for recreational use.
- The ICNL system consists of four reserves, each managed for particular objectives.
- Learn how ICNL serves the IC 20/20 program and is "not just open space."
- We have more than five miles of maintained public-access trails, including a self-guided nature trail with interpretive literature.
- Our Education Coordinator and student staff wrote a book on South Hill Natural Area!
- When planning your visit, please be aware of our rules of use.
