We All Live on the Water Campaign

We All Live On the Water Environmental ProgramWith collaborative partners throughout the Lake Michigan basin, LNRP is utilizing both a Costal Management Grant and a DNR River Planning grant, to coordinate the We All Live on the Water sign campaign and seminar series.

Signs bearing that slogan, and displaying the DNR tip line have been placed throughout the basin, reinforcing the sense of community and a shared responsibility for water quality. This Wisconsin Coastal Management collaboration involves basin groups along the Lake Michigan shoreline including the Sheboygan River Basin Partnership, the Milwaukee River Basin Partnership, and the Root-Pike Watershed Improvement Network.

Individual and organizational sponsorship of signs receive full benefits of LNRP membership.

The We All Live on the Water seminar series brings timely discussion of water-related issues to residents of the basin, featuring speakers of acknowledged expertise and encouraging a public dialogue to elicit and enlighten all points of view. LNRP also recognizes that the seminars further cultivate our partnerships with local groups and other organizations.

The first year of seminars and the launch of our quarterly newsletter were funded by a DNR River Planning Grant. Seminars are developed in collaboration with local partner organizations that have created steering committees. These steering committees have continued to work together on a variety of projects including conferences, calendars, other seminars, and food fairs. Check our quarterly newsletter for updates and upcoming events.

TIn the Fall of 2008, LNRP launched the Champion of Conservation Environmental Award Program. The award banquet will also showcase nationally recognized speakers as a further development of the We All Live on the Water campaign.

Peter Annin - author of the Great Lakes Water WarsOn Thursday, December 4th, 2008, LNRP welcomed Peter Annin to the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Peter is author of the timely "Great Lakes Water Wars." His story of the long-standing tensions revolving around the waters of the Great Lakes are a great complement to understanding the value of the Great Lakes Compact. Peter works as Associate Director of the Institutes for Journalism and Natural Resources, a nonpartisan national nonprofit that organizes educational fellowships for mid-career environmental journalists.

Buddy HuffakerBuddy Huffaker joined LNRP as the Keynote Speaker at the Spring 2009 Champions of Conservation Award Program on Thursday, June 4 at the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary, in Green Bay. As the Executive Director of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, Buddy Huffaker serves as a leading voice for the power of combining the emerging interests of the green building movement with the longer standing conservation and environmental movements.  Building upon his own academic background in landscape architecture, Buddy was deeply involved in every aspect of the design and construction of the Aldo Leopold Legacy Center, currently one of the U.S. Green Building Council’s highest ranked LEED NC (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, New Construction category) buildings in the world. The Aldo Leopold Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by the children of Aldo Leopold, keeps his legacy alive by promoting the "Land Ethic" he so eloquently defined. The Foundation engages in ecological restoration, environmental education, land preservation, and scientific research on the 1,400 acre Leopold Memorial Reserve in central Wisconsin and surrounding landscapes.

Joel Brammeier of the Alliance for the Great LakesOur Fall 2009 Champions of Conservation Award Program brought Joel Brameier to the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc on Thursday, November 12.  Joel serves as acting president and CEO of the Alliance for the Great Lakes. On staff since 2001, Joel oversees a staff of 20 professionals dedicated to protecting and restoring clean water, educating citizens and youth and building a sustainable future for the Great Lakes. He has led the development of laws and regulations to prevent invasive species in several Great Lakes states and recently published a report on the urgent need to permanently stop the influx of invaders like Asian carp. He received his master's degree from the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources & Environment in 1998, and his bachelor's degree from Valparaiso University in 1996. Prior to joining the Alliance, Joel worked for the American Medical Association. He has lived in the Great Lakes watershed his entire life and now resides on the north side of Chicago.