Some donors, project partners and former employees are raising concerns about the potential impact from a stream of staff departures at a storied Lowcountry conservation organization that has long been a cornerstone in South Carolina’s environmental community.
They told The Post and Courier that they worry the departures — 38 since 2022 and at least 15 since June — are draining the Coastal Conservation League of experience, expertise and bandwidth critical to its mission.
A staff that once numbered more than 40 now consists of about 20. The losses include most of the league’s program managers and development team, and all of its communication managers.
Michael Prevost, a major Conservation League supporter who has made five-figure donations to the League, said the organization has served a unique and essential role in conservation, working “in concert with land protection groups and also environmental groups.”
“It’s been a highly effective coalition over the years,” Prevost said. “And now we have this gap. Nobody is minding the store there. It gives me a great deal of pause as a donor.”
The Conservation League’s advocacy work, he said, has diminished as other groups carry the load.
Executive Director Faith Rivers James said in an interview that the attrition wasn’t unusual, citing a 20-percent annual nonprofit turnover rate industrywide.
What’s more, she said, she is spearheading a reorganization and implementing a new strategic plan, which can cause friction among staff accustomed to a certain approach, resulting in some staff turnover.
“As the organization evolves, we mature from a startup, doing all things with few people, to a moderate-sized organization with field offices, to us as a (relatively) large environmental organization with a different set of skills and needs,” she said in an interview after initially providing written responses to questions.
You can’t throw spaghetti against the wall anymore, James added. You need to be more strategic with the limited resources you have.
The recent losses include most of the league’s program managers and development team, and all of its communication managers.
In her prepared response, she noted two recent hires — Chief Conservation Officer Lori Cary-Kothera and Senior Advisor Robert Boyles — as accomplished leaders who will help “amplify the Conservation League’s voice across our coastal region.”
Charles Lane, chairman of the S.C. Conservation Bank board and a former board member of the Conservation League, said it’s critical for conservation leaders to put the mission above all else.
“No matter how smart and educated you are, if that fire isn’t in the belly, you’re never going to be as effective as you need to be,” he said.
As chairman of the ACE Basin Task Force from 1989 until 2004, Lane worked closely with the League and other nonprofits to secure more than 180,000 acres for preservation, primarily by negotiating with private property owners to place conservation easements on the land. The 350,000-acre ACE Basin, located northeast of Beaufort, now includes 215,000 acres of protected estuary land and serves as a model for conservationists nationally.
Today, the League is “not hitting on all cylinders,” Lane said. “It is a loss for conservation when environment advocacy is a left-out ingredient. To make this casserole, you need all the ingredients.”
It’s up to the board to ensure that its organization is operating efficiently and effectively, he said, “and if it isn’t, you need to take all appropriate actions.”
A history of advocacy
The Coastal Conservation League was founded by Dana Beach in 1989, three weeks before Hurricane Hugo slammed into South Carolina. Among its first priorities was the recovery of the Francis Marion Forest, much of which had been laid flat by the violent storm. It was an opportunity to reimagine the forest’s future, to replace the loblolly pines with more durable indigenous long leaf pine, and to ensure that habitat essential for a variety of wildlife was conserved.
The League, a scrappy organization with enormous ambition, was off and running. In the decades that followed, the nonprofit grew both in brainpower and financial clout, tackling all sorts of challenges from marine protections to community advocacy. It became the leading conservation group in the state, fighting on multiple fronts, lobbying lawmakers and informing the public.
Not every resolution was perfect, but the organization claimed victory in numerous cases: limiting interstates 526 and 73, establishing urban growth boundaries, promoting greenbelts (and the government funding they require), addressing suburban sprawl, protecting endangered species and endangered human communities, and more.
James, who took the reins of the organization in August 2022, said in her written response that the Conservation League’s mission is to protect the natural environment for generations to come and that the group’s priorities haven’t changed.
“Simply put, we have one goal, and that is to protect the Carolina coast,” she said.
The Post and Courier interviewed 16 former Conservation League employees for this story, as well as eight supporters and partners who each shared concerns. Most declined to be identified, citing fear of reprisal.
After recent departures, seven people now work on policy, advocacy or government relations, according to the League’s website, compared to about 25 who worked in those areas in the past.
The affiliated GrowFood Carolina operation has seen half of its team depart in recent months. Its staff, which includes drivers and warehouse managers, now numbers 11, according to the organization’s website.
Eleven of those who left in recent months had worked at the League between five and 15 years. Former staff who spoke to the newspaper, on the record or on background, described a scenario of diminished employee engagement and collaboration, marginalization and an atmosphere that led many to search for other jobs.
Former employees describe ‘disarray’
Brooke Blosser, former land, water and wildlife project manager at the Conservation League, left in October after two years. She now works for a conservation group in Florida.
She said “the instability of the work environment” compelled her to resign.
It was an “uncomfortable” place to be as she watched a convoy of staff members leave, Blosser said, echoing others’ descriptions.
Chance Roe, an accountant who left on Oct. 3 after 10 months on the job, was recruited by another company that offered better pay. He said he had observed a disconnect between the leadership team and staff.
“There were not really any discussions between departments when decisions were made” by the executive team, he said. “It was their way or the highway. If you tried to say anything dissenting, they made it harder for you.”
The work environment, he and others said, was particularly upsetting because staff members were wholly dedicated to the mission of the organization. For many, this was a dream job.
“There’s just a lot of disarray right now,” Roe said.
Prevost, the donor, said the staff exodus indicates systemic problems.
“What I find extraordinarily unique, and uniquely disturbing, is the high staff turnover, most especially senior staff,” he said. “These are people who have a great deal of expertise, experience, effective leadership, and you can’t replace that. When you lose somebody who’s had 10-plus years of that kind of experience, whether in philanthropy, land use, applied science, whatever, you can’t replace that.”
The loss of valuable expertise, which Prevost attributed to leadership problems, has been confounding, he said.
“I don’t understand why it’s not being addressed,” he said, noting the League is in his will, but now he is reconsidering. “I’m in a quandary what to do.”’
Madeleine McGee, a longtime nonprofit professional in Charleston, is well acquainted with the League’s work over the decades. She also worked with James starting in 2002 to establish the Center for Heirs Property and Preservation when McGee was executive director of the Coastal Community Foundation.
McGee said regime change is always challenging and can take time, especially following a strong leader like Beach. As nonprofits grow, their scope of work changes along with their staffing needs, she said.
“So a lot of turnover is normal,” she said. “To pivot from one type of work to another doesn’t happen overnight. It could be that it takes time for the old guard to realize they need to go.”
James’ efforts to implement the new strategic plan and rebuild the Conservation League has been especially challenging after the tenures of the organization’s two previous leaders: Beach, who directed the nonprofit for 27 years, and Laura Cantrell, who took over until 2022. Each had a particular management style and set of priorities.
James must contend with the residue of a work culture in need of change, McGee said.
“We need this organization, we need this team to succeed,” she said, adding that James is trying to put the right team together. “I think she’s the right leader for the time.”
League says its mission remains the same
In her interview, James expounded on the League’s goals and strategies, as well as its efforts to improve workplace culture and morale.
“We’re trying to be more strategic with limited resources,” she said. “Expectations on us are high, and our desire is to cover every need.”
To do so, she is prioritizing policy work, advocacy and litigation, she said. Concurrently, she is encouraging more engagement among staff and working toward more leadership development and career advancement. Team members should be able to work “across functions,” James said, adding that wildlife experts should be able to attend zoning hearings.
“We build capacities across the program when everyone’s taking on some part of the government relations work,” she said. “We can’t do land planning work without acknowledging that this is really government relations.”
One’s experience, not title, is what’s most important, she said. And project autonomy must be balanced against the priorities of senior management.
The Conservation League brought in $4.87 million in revenue in 2024, according to its most recent federal nonprofit tax filings, but had $5.76 million in expenses — leading to a net loss of $892,000. In 2023, the League had net income of about $1 million on $6.15 million in revenue.
The organization boasts nearly $21 million in assets, including a large endowment. Endowment funds are restricted and generally can’t be used to pay for daily operations; only a portion of the interest income can be used.
When The Post and Courier tried to contact current board members, two referred the newspaper to board chairman Kent Griffin and to James. One said board members signed non-disclosure agreements preventing them from speaking publicly about internal matters.
Griffin, traveling abroad, said by email that “reinvigorating staff leadership development and retention is a primary focus of CCL’s new strategic plan. … While staff meet the demands of safeguarding our coast, CCL is supporting leadership coaching and engagement to help the team attain balance and fulfillment while they pursue their passion to protect our coast.”
Griffin praised board members, calling them “experienced in governance critical to long-term organizational success.”
“They each bring a diverse set of experiences including leadership, management, legal, human capital, finance and communication roles,” he wrote. “Our board includes a wide range of outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen, clean water advocates, birders, and land preservationists. They all share a deep passion for the natural environment along our coast.”
James said the board is aware of the recent departures and other challenges and is working to make improvements. She said it is “the highest capacity board I’ve ever worked with,” one that understands the opportunities and thinks strategically.
