ISLAND STEWARDSHIP
Kiawah Conservancy Keeps Island Natural
Coming to Kiawah is a breath-taking, loss-for-words
type of experience. Members and visitors alike speak
with reverence about their first visit and their delight
at the lush greenery, the soft beach, the bobcats and
deer. The natural setting is the key to the island’s
magic, and the Kiawah Conservancy focuses on
protecting Kiawah’s most important asset.
Kiawah was meant to be developed in harmony with
its surroundings. In 1997, a group of members felt
that it could go even further, and founded the Kiawah
Conservancy to preserve more of the natural habitat
on the island. Today, the Conservancy has preserved
over 2,200 acres of critical barrier island habitat on
and around Kiawah. Four staff members (executive
director, Donna Windham; communications and
education coordinator, Jennifer Woody; office
systems administrator, Beverly Kline; and land
preservation coordinator, Lee Bundrick) undertake the
significant programming and outreach efforts for the
Conservancy. Unlike some other organizations, the
Conservancy doesn’t have members – they consider all
property owners to be partners in their mission.
There are 15 different habitat types on Kiawah Island
supporting an astonishing 20 species of mammals,
over 250 species of resident and migratory birds, 40
species of reptiles and thousands of invertebrates. With
the help of property owners across the island, the
Conservancy is working to protect them all.
Property owners have been donating property to
the Conservancy since the beginning, allowing the
organization to preserve much of its land. This land
is incredibly important for island wildlife. However,
the Conservancy also works to keep other properties
on the island as natural as possible. You might have
noticed that a lot of your neighbors on the island
have a Kiawah Conservancy bird emblem on their
mailboxes. That bird means the property is in the
6 | KIAWAH ISLAND DIGEST
Naturally Kiawah Recognition Program.
The Naturally Kiawah Recognition Program was
developed to encourage property owners to partner
with the Conservancy by restoring and maintaining
wildlife habitat in residential landscapes. Properties
with the designation provide important features for
wildlife habitat, including dense buffers of understory
plants, minimized areas of turf or laid pine straw, and
no exotic invasive species. Jennifer Woody notes that,
“so many property owners participate in this program
that we’ve already met our 2020 goal; 70% of single
family homes on the island meet the criteria.” It’s a
win for wildlife as well as property values.
The Conservancy partners with other organizations
to promote awareness of native plants and to protect
wildlife, such as the Town of Kiawah Island’s (TOKI)
GrowNative initiative. The Naturally Kiawah
Demonstration Garden in Night Heron Park allows
members to see in person how beautiful native plants
can be. The Conservancy Garden Keepers are a group
of volunteers who take care of the garden and are
often on site to tend the plants and answer questions.
The Conservancy also has many outreach
opportunities for property owners throughout the
year. The popular Conservation Matters program,
sponsored by the Conservancy, TOKI and KICA,
takes place at The Sandcastle and focuses on wildlife,
habitats, and other environmental topics. Previous
programs have highlighted bobcats, dolphins, sea
turtles and more. Events such as Music in the Garden
and summer activities geared toward kids are a great
way to find out about the Conservancy’s mission. The
Conservancy’s magazine, Naturally Kiawah, is available
quarterly.
To learn about all the work the Conservancy does on
the island, visit KiawahConservancy.org.