Victoria B. Mars Joins Natural Lands Board of Trustees

MEDIA, Pa., August 21, 2025 – Natural Lands announced today that Victoria B. Mars has joined its board of trustees.

Ms. Mars’ four-decade career at Mars, Incorporated spanned operations to governance, with a focus on creating trusting relationships that yield mutual, impactful results. She is a former chairperson and director of the Mars Board and continues to serve on the Remuneration and Talent Committee.

Among her accomplishments at the company, Ms. Mars designed and built the global Mars Ombudsman program, which provides Mars associates with a service that addresses workplace challenges in a neutral, confidential, and informal manner. Ms. Mars notes that the Mars Five Principals—quality, efficiency, responsibility, mutuality, and freedom—are core to the company’s operations and to her non-profit leadership approach. “Being grounded in solid principles guides my decisions,” she says. “I’m especially intrigued by mutuality in land conservation—it should result in a win-win solution for the environment and for people.”

Ms. Mars began her involvement with Natural Lands through her role as a board member with the Virginia Cretella Mars Foundation, a charitable giving body named for her late mother. For nearly two decades, grants from the Foundation provided essential gap funding on land protection projects where public funding covered most—but not all—of the expenses. “Investment from the Virginia Cretella Mars Foundation has enabled us to leverage significant public funding, protecting more than 4,000 acres in Chester and Delaware Counties,” said Oliver Bass, president of Natural Lands. “We’ve been fortunate to have Victoria’s inquisitive and forward-thinking perspective inform our President Council since 2021. She will be an exceptionally valuable addition to our board of trustees.”

Ms. Mars earned her bachelor’s degree in administrative sciences, German, and French from Yale University and a master’s degree in finance from the Wharton School of Business. She serves on the boards of Livelihoods Fund for Family Farmers and Salzburg Global Seminar based in Washington, D.C. and Salzburg, Austria, where she served as chairperson. She has recently joined the board of the Philadelphia Ballet.  Ms. Mars formerly served on the board of directors for Foxcroft School in Middleburg, Virginia, EcoHealth Alliance in New York, and the Center for Large Landscape Conservation based in Bozeman, Montana. She looks forward to bringing lessons learned there closer to home. “A connected landscape benefits everyone,” she said, “and collaboration among conservation organizations is key to achieving that goal.”

Susan Mucciarone, chairperson of Natural Lands’ Board of Trustees, noted, “We are thrilled to welcome Victoria as a trustee. With her principled approach, collaborative mindset, and substantive understanding of the value of connected landscapes, Victoria is poised to help shape the future of conservation in our region. We look forward to the vision, energy, and informed perspective she brings to our work.”

Natural Lands is dedicated to preserving and nurturing nature’s wonders while creating opportunities for joy and discovery in the outdoors for everyone. As the Greater Philadelphia region’s oldest and largest land conservation organization, Natural Lands—which is member supported—has preserved more than 136,600 acres, including 40+ nature preserves and one public garden totaling more than 23,600 acres. About five million people live within five miles of land under the organization’s protection. Land for life, nature for all. natlands.org.

Please note: “Natural Lands” is the organization’s official operating name and should be used instead of its legal designation (Natural Lands Trust, Inc.).

Media Inquiries:

Kit Werner, Senior Director of Communications
610-353-5587 ext. 267