Abstract
The Whitefish Lake Institute (WLI) has fostered local and regional watershed stewardship through a combination of scientific discovery, educational programs, and community activities. We believe that capacity building not only benefits the organization and its mission, but supports partners of diverse interests to yield lasting change. Watershed groups must stay relevant to their constituents while creatively engaging the demographics hardest to reach.
2015 marks WLI’s 10 year anniversary. Initially, WLI focused on key programs to build credibility and trust in the community and with partners. Later, WLI developed a baseline monitoring program for the Whitefish Lake watershed to identify trends, and developed educational programs for school and adult groups to foster stewardship.
Over time, opportunities arose to further the understanding of our watershed and to build relationships. We developed formal partnerships with the City of Whitefish, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Flathead Basin Commission, and the Road Scholar Program which enabled WLI to hire additional full-time staff and reach a broader audience. We brokered a solution with developers that led to a 30 acre wetland property gift to WLI where we opened a public interpretive nature trail. A popular fundraiser was developed to support our land management and internal programs.
Start Date
24-4-2015 10:30 AM
End Date
24-4-2015 11:00 AM
Document Type
Presentation
Fostering Watershed Stewardship
The Whitefish Lake Institute (WLI) has fostered local and regional watershed stewardship through a combination of scientific discovery, educational programs, and community activities. We believe that capacity building not only benefits the organization and its mission, but supports partners of diverse interests to yield lasting change. Watershed groups must stay relevant to their constituents while creatively engaging the demographics hardest to reach.
2015 marks WLI’s 10 year anniversary. Initially, WLI focused on key programs to build credibility and trust in the community and with partners. Later, WLI developed a baseline monitoring program for the Whitefish Lake watershed to identify trends, and developed educational programs for school and adult groups to foster stewardship.
Over time, opportunities arose to further the understanding of our watershed and to build relationships. We developed formal partnerships with the City of Whitefish, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Flathead Basin Commission, and the Road Scholar Program which enabled WLI to hire additional full-time staff and reach a broader audience. We brokered a solution with developers that led to a 30 acre wetland property gift to WLI where we opened a public interpretive nature trail. A popular fundraiser was developed to support our land management and internal programs.