Where Are They Now?
The “Where Are They Now” series will touch back on some of our past work to see how our projects have grown and evolved.
We’re committed to delivering durable impact and value for our partners and the communities they serve. This comes out of Quantified Ventures focus on rigorous financial analysis, outcomes alignment, strategic partnerships, and sustainable results.
Exemplary Forest Investment Fund (May 2026)
In 2024, QV helped close the Exemplary Forestry Investment Fund’s (EFIF) first single-property fund, Scammon Ridge Headwaters—protecting thousands of acres of Maine forest, preserving community access, and launching a new model for conservation finance.
The project has been a success. At closing, Forest Society of Maine placed a conservation easement that protected the conservation values of the property and ensured permanent public access for the residents of Greenville and the surrounding area.
Exemplary Forestry Management (EFM), the nonprofit manager founded alongside the fund, has been actively managing the 3,000 acres of forest land, prioritizing long-term forest health and timber values over short-term financial gains. EFM will begin restoration and sustainable forest management activities this fall. Their work is guided in part by a new analysis identifying important late-successional timber stands — older-than-typical trees for the region — that the team will work to protect. EFM is also exploring carbon crediting for the site, which would bring an ecosystems-based revenue stream to support the project financially.
Building on this model, the EFIF team is fundraising for a second fund in partnership with Inland Woods + Trails of Bethel, Maine, focused on a 10,000-acre parcel with importance to the local outdoor recreation economy. This second fund will take an innovative approach by integrating recreational trail infrastructure alongside sustainable timber management.
From the start, the Exemplary Forestry Investment Fund was envisioned as an impact investment vehicle that seeks to blend $90M+ of public, private, and philanthropic capital to acquire and manage 100,000+ acres of Maine forests with the goal of improved environmental and financial outcomes. As a first-time fund, EFIF would need to show a track record of success to prove its credibility to investors and achieve its goal.
The strategy we developed with EFIF was twofold: in the short term, purchase properties in stand-alone LLCs, to set the stage for long-term potential ownership through the $90M evergreen fund. Eventually, the larger fund can buy the properties from the stand-alone funds and pool them in a single fund.
The successful closing of Scammon Ridge and its current performance, as well as the progress to date towards closing a second property, serve to bolster the EFIF’s credibility with investors. The success of these stand-alone funds demonstrates the team’s track record, management experience, and financial expertise the EFIF needs to raise the full $90M fund and realize its vision of long-term land ownership for better outcomes.
EFIF's launch was made possible by a network of partners and funders, including New England Forestry Foundation, Maine Mountain Collaborative, Quantified Ventures, Ropes and Gray, Inland Woods + Trails, Baskahegan/Brooks and Walden, Opus Business Consulting, and Jerry Bley at Creative Conservation. Funders include the US Endowment for Forestry and Communities and the Innovative Finance for National Forests program, NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant, Sewall Foundation, and Horizon Foundation.
Learn more about the Exemplary Forestry Investment Fund at efmanagement.org.
“We always knew that philanthropic dollars alone were insufficient to meet the scale of the conservation challenge in this region, and so finding a pathway to sustainable impact financing was critical. We developed a model where each successive project builds on the last and each acquisition strengthens our team’s credibility and investor confidence.”
Vermont Huts & Trails (March 2026)
QV first started working with Vermont Huts & Trails in 2020 to help provide feasibility and financing support for the new organization’s ambitious dreams of building the Velomont Trail from Massachusetts to Canada. QV supported Vermont Huts and partners consider how best to structure their partnerships to access the widest range of funding available, maximize internal capacity, and leverage their small but nimble team in pursuit of their goals.
QV also supported the build out of template financial models for the organization to use in exploring the viability of new in-town hostels, that bring the Velomont trail into Vermont communities. With QV’s support, Vermont Huts & Trails secured a PRI investment, new grant funding, and nearly $6.3M in federal funds.
Now 10 years old, Vermont Huts & Trails serves more than 10,000 visitors annually at 19 huts and hostels and shows no signs of slowing down. The organization has only expanded their tremendous work since working with QV to include more huts, new hostels, and many more miles of trail.
“In the ten years since we launched Vermont Huts & Trails, a lot has changed but one thing has not, our mission—to foster a deeper appreciation for our natural environment and strengthen Vermont’s communities by providing enriching and immersive outdoor experiences for all” says RJ Thompson, Executive Director of Vermont Huts & Trails.
Their dream of building the largest hut-supported trail system in the US comes closer every day, and we’re proud to have been a part of their journey from the early days!
Learn more about Vermont Huts & Trails at vermonthuts.org.
“We had hoped, but never could have imagined, that so many folks out there would also believe in the positive impact outdoor recreation can have on people, their communities, the environment, and their local economies.”
To learn more about our Breakthrough Environmental Projects and How We’ve Changed the Game, check out the QV case studies.
Breakthrough Environmental Projects
