Mission and Values

The mission of Freshwater is to inspire and empower people to value and preserve our freshwater resources.

Since 1968, Freshwater has been a leading public nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving freshwater resources and their surrounding watersheds. To that end, we:

RECOGNIZE
the vital role of freshwater to all living things and the impending crisis in the quantity and quality of accessible freshwater.
DEDICATE
our experience and resources to activities that lead to understanding, protection, enhancement, and restoration of freshwater resources.
INVITE
the participation and support of individuals, associations, business and industry, institutions, educators, and government in these activities.

Our Values

Freshwater’s values holistically inform our work towards durable change, including our internal operations and policies as well as the approaches we use to build towards impact through our programs. In alignment with our mission and values, we collaborate with and leverage the work of others.

We value equity and inclusion of diverse perspectives in shaping our shared water future, and seek to rectify the historical and continued exclusion of under-resourced communities in the making of water policy and budget decisions.

We value safe and reliable water for all Minnesotans and everyone downstream.

We value community-led solutions that foster equitable and durable change.

We value science and evidence-based principles as a basis for our advocacy and action.

We value convening collaboratively and serving as a catalyst for constructive dialogue and change.

We value teamwork, transparency, integrity and shared leadership.

We value sustainability in our operations (reducing water use and energy consumption, reaching carbon-neutral impact and zero waste production).

Freshwater Society does not and will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, hiring and firing of staff, selection of volunteers and vendors, and provision of services. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, clients, volunteers, subcontractors, vendors, and clients.