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| Diane Lynch, Freshwater Development Director |
Fall is in the air and that means it is time to think of buttoning up our overcoats and reflecting upon our year’s efforts.
For me, it is time to thank all the members and friends of the Freshwater Society who have generously supported our work throughout 2011. You have helped us in so many ways to fulfill our mission of “educating and inspiring people to value, conserve and protect water resources.”
And it is also time for me to urge all of you to continue supporting us financially as the year ends and as we move into 2012.
You can donate on-line here. Or go to www.freshwater.org and click on the “Donate” tab at the top of the page.
I’d like to draw your attention to some of the innovative programs we have undertaken this year. Please take a look at the articles in this issue of Facets to see some of the projects we have under way, such as:
- MN FarmWise (Page 1), is a new and exciting program we are organizing with the National Park Service. It links farmers who have used sustainable practices with those who would like to and is designed to reduce soil erosion and runoff of fertilizers and pesticides. The project just won an Idea Open award.
- Work for Water Campaign (Page 2) takes citizen involvement to a new level and is a multi-year effort to educate and influence Minnesota citizens’ knowledge, attitude and behaviors around storm water and non-point source pollution. The Campaign expands the successful Community Clean-Ups for Water Quality we have been organizing with the Friends of the Minnesota Valley throughout the state. We are urging citizens to “grab a rake to save a lake.” Our Work for Water Micro-Challenges will motivate neighbors statewide to compete for cash awards for the best implemented ideas on non-point pollution prevention behavior every season. The Minnesota Clean Water Challenge will engage communities in an internet competition to collect the most points for their individual actions to protect clean water.
- Also on Page 2, there is an article about the next speaker in the free public lecture series we sponsor with the University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences. Fred Kirschenmann, a national leader in organic agriculture who will speak on water and agriculture in the 21st Century, joins an illustrious group of national speakers who have shared their leading-edge thoughts on controversial water issues with hundreds of attendees.
The goal of all our Freshwater programs is to demonstrate that “what we do on the land affects our water.”
All of these terrific programs are worthy of your support. Please fill out that envelope or point your smart phone at that QR code. If you choose, you can support us on-line on Give to the Max Day (a part of the statewide Give MN campaign) on Wednesday, Nov. 16. As the tax year ends, please make Freshwater part of your year-end giving.
If you are interested in our Planned Giving programs, please contact me for information on including us in your will, investment donations, etc. I can be reached at 952-314-8134 or dlynch@freshwater.org
(P.S. A heartfelt thanks to our donors who gave generously at our first Ice OUT/Loon IN fund-raiser in April and at the Junkmarket Under Glass fund-raiser in September at Otten Bros in Long Lake. Mark your calendars for our next Ice OUT/Loon IN celebration on Thursday, April 12, 2012.)