This study by Duke University Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions seeks to answer the questions: “Why do rural voters and their representatives often oppose environmental regulations? What accounts for this apparent rural/urban divide on attitudes toward environmental policy? Are … Continued
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An info-graphic by the Duke University Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions summaries key points from their report, Understanding Rural Attitudes Toward the Environment and Conservation in America. There are 10 major findings from their research as well as recommendations … Continued
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With the uncertainty looming about how long COVID-19 physical distancing will last, members of the Urban Waters Learning Network are finding creative ways to keep social connections alive. While we are all effected by the coronavirus pandemic, we are each … Continued
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Broward County, Florida Once a part of the vast expanse of the Everglades wetlands, Broward County, Florida was first thought by settlers to be uninhabitable. Draining wetlands and building near the coastline made population increases possible. Today it is home … Continued
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Photo by dcandau via Pixabay If you have heard the old adage “nonprofits cannot participate in lobbying,” this series is for you (and whoever told you that!). Through this three-part online classroom, we will: Quickly review the difference between advocacy … Continued
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The report examines the importance of environmental issues–like public lands, land and water conservation, climate change, heat and drought, and wildfires–for Latino voters. Each section includes an explanation of the environmental issue and why it is important to Latino communities, … Continued
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A publication from the Partnership for Working Families and the Community Benefits Law Center, the guide explains what community benefits agreements (CBAs) are and provides: principles for effective CBAs indicators of potentially weak CBAs case studies on ineffective and harmful … Continued
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The guide was developed by community-based organizations for community-based organizations working to develop and implement climate solutions. The information is also useful to philanthropic institutions funding climate resilience strategies as well as to government officials developing climate action plans. The … Continued
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While many municipalities are planning for climate resilience, the process isn’t necessarily inclusive of the most vulnerable communities. This guide provides direction to local governments to design more equitable planning processes. The document includes: a primer on social inequities and … Continued
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The Bronx River Alliance, founded in 2001, is a non-profit organization that works with public and private partners to protect, improve, and restore the Bronx River. Providing a model for community-based watershed engagement, the Bronx River Alliance offers interconnected program … Continued
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This report counters the notion that “gentrification is inevitable” by offering an alternative approach to development, one that directly involves and benefits the community in which the development is taking place. Focusing on the history and statistics of displacement affecting … Continued
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The 11th Street Bridge Park Equitable Development Plan was developed in 2015 following a year-long, community-led effort to ensure that nearby residents can benefit from this new civic space planned over the Anacostia River in Washington DC. The Plan was … Continued
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This report begins by outlining the history of development and disinvestment of DC’s Wards 7 and 8, recent housing market trends in the DC area, and resident perspectives on new development. It also outlines the progress of the 11th Street … Continued
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This guide—informed by a Partners for Places 2017/2018 pilot project by the District Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE), Georgetown Climate Center, and other partners—outlines a community engagement model in which government and the community collaborate as equal partners. In … Continued
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People learn from each other, and inspire each other… People exchange ideas and practices and bring them into their own communities… People tackle hard questions and have honest exchanges… Urban Waters brings new voices and perspectives to … Continued
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The report was created by Master of Urban and Regional Planning students at Portland State University for the Living Cully partnership, which is a collaborative effort to create environmental infrastructure investments without displacing the community. The authors state: There is … Continued
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This workshop summary provides an overview of the 2018 National Training Workshop sessions and key discussion topics. Links to all available presentations and photographs from the workshop are available on the main website. Direct links to each speaker’s presentation are also provided in the summary PDF.
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The guide was prepared by members of the Oregon Health and Outdoors Initiative—the Oregon Public Health Institute and the Willamette Partnership—in collaboration with the Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange. The guide proposes green infrastructure solutions to improving prevalent health issues in … Continued
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Groundwork Richmond, established in 2010, is one of 20 Trusts within the Groundwork USA network. The organization plays an integral role in developing the greenway, greening the urban landscape, engaging the community, and educating youth. Environmental justice is also central to Groundwork Richmond’s programs, which benefit both the environment and the local community. Groundwork Richmond has formed strong partnerships with local organizations and agencies to provide meaningful job training and workforce development to build the Richmond Greenway and enhance urban forestry.
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Through their Parks with Purpose program, The Conservation Fund and partner organizations are designing and implementing green infrastructure in underserved urban communities while engaging and training residents to make way for lasting change.
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To further combat the impacts of CSOs, stormwater runoff, and pollution in urban watersheds, local organizations and businesses formed the RI Green Infrastructure Coalition (GIC) in 2014. The Coalition is made up of nearly 40 local businesses, non-profits, and government offices in the Providence-Metro and Newport-Aquidneck Island areas. They are forming partnerships and using green infrastructure to decrease stormwater flooding, address climate change impacts, enhance water quality, and promote equity in urban watersheds.
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This report compiles informative case studies, focusing on programs that have successfully incorporated artists, art, and culture into their place-based, transformative approaches. These programs aimed to address affordability issues, make connections between people and their environment, promote holistic water resource management, increase community participation, mitigate and remediate damages, integrate community needs into infrastructure, and support community activism.
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Environmental Community Action, Inc (ECO-Action) – a grassroots organization that works with people to fight for their rights to clean air, land, and water – acts as a support system to the communities they serve by providing resources and creating partnerships with other organizations. They have developed many programs designed for educating and empowering the Proctor and Intrenchment Creek watershed communities to advocate for equity and environmental protections. Among their initiatives, ECO-Action is heavily involved in community education and advocacy towards the implementation of green infrastructure projects that address stormwater flooding issues and provide more livable neighborhoods for underserved communities.
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In 2013, the Proctor Creek Watershed was designated by the EPA as an Urban Waters Federal Partnership location, with goals to engage the community while improving water quality, providing green spaces, and supporting green infrastructure. The Conservation Fund was awarded an EPA Urban Waters Small Grant in 2016 to work with residents and multiple organizations of the Proctor Creek Watershed to create green infrastructure solutions that benefit the community and the environment.
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To further understand the severity and sources of bacterial pollution in the four urban subwatersheds in the Hudson River Estuary, Sarah Lawrence Center for the Urban River at Beczak (CURB), supported by an EPA Urban Waters Small Grant, created the Lower Hudson Urban Waters Collaborative. Partnering with Riverkeeper, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance, and the Bronx River Alliance, the Urban Waters Collaborative created a strong partnership in the Lower Hudson Valley in which the organizations share experiences and combine data resources with the goal of strengthening stewardship and community science capacity.
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Los Angeles River Watershed: Climate, Pollution, and Policies The Los Angeles (LA) River watershed covers an area of 854 square miles, originating in the Santa Monica, Santa Susana, and San Gabriel Mountains. The headwaters of the river are mainly open … Continued
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Three projects from different organizations in the eastern United States are using creative methods to educate students about environmental issues in their communities and to empower urban youth to make a difference. While the issues that the communities face are varied, each organization is engaging youth to raise awareness and to create solutions.
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El Caño Martin Peña (CMP) is a 3.75-mile-long tidal channel located within the San Juan Bay National Estuary in Puerto Rico, the only tropical estuary within the National Estuary Program. The degraded channel has threatened not only communities’ health, but the ecosystem as well. ENLACE engages in public education activities to promote an understanding of the impacts of environmental degradation, fostering critical consciousness and democratic action to support restoration efforts. The restoration of the estuarine tidal channel will allow for mangroves to flourish and increase biodiversity, improving resilience during storms and providing opportunities for tourism.
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The EPA is offering the Local Foods, Local Places Toolkit to help communities interested in using local foods to support downtown and neighborhood revitalization. Developed by EPA’s Office of Sustainable Communities, it provides step-by-step instructions for planning and hosting the … Continued
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In urban settings, stormwater runoff is one of the leading water quality concerns due to limited surface area where water can infiltrate into the soil. Impervious surfaces result in water flowing quickly across pavement and down gutters and sewers rather than dispersing out evenly over the landscape. The farther and faster the water travels, the more contaminants and sediment it picks up along the way.
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This U.S. Water Alliance publication summarizes the overarching and regional challenges that demonstrate the need for more equitable approaches, then outlines the “three pillars of equity” based on USWA’s original research, as well as data from PolicyLink. The report goes … Continued
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The Wabash River, which is Indiana’s state river, has a rich economic and cultural history. As a tributary of the Ohio River, it is part of the upper reaches of the 1,245,000-square-mile Mississippi River Basin, and so was a vital navigation and trade route for French traders traveling between Canada and the Gulf of Mexico.
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The San Gabriel River drains a 713-mile watershed in the San Gabriel Mountains, flowing as far south as Long Beach, where it enters Alamitos Bay as a tidal river. It shares its watershed with two other major rivers: the Los Angeles and the Santa Ana.
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Most people are familiar with archeology as a field that explores ancient civilizations by uncovering artifacts. However, archeology has applications in modern urban locations as well. Cities change quickly, and in the process, the lives and stories of residents—and even whole neighborhoods and rivers—can be buried or substantially altered. Archeology can uncover the stories that never made it to the history books, and can also help communities to discover and tell their own stories and histories.
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The headwaters of the San Antonio River originate in Bexar County, from which it begins a 240-mile journey through six counties toward San Antonio Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. From Spain’s colonization efforts to the emergence of San Antonio as the second most populous city in Texas, the area’s rich history and culture have been shaped by the San Antonio River.
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The Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum explores issues impacting urban contemporary communities. Its approach starts with research and documentation of urban life and history organized around the concerns that are relevant to the largely African American residents in the local river neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River, where the museum is located; then expands to metropolitan Washington, DC area and to like urban communities. Through its innovative research focus, exhibitions, and education programs on the issue of urban waterways, the museum has actively encouraged community investment and stewardship.
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Groundwork Anacostia, a “trust” under the umbrella of Groundwork USA, is based in the District of Columbia’s Ward 7, which has the longest portion of riverbank—including four out of the five tributaries that feed the Anacostia River. The neighborhood has a large amount of green space in the form of National Park Service (NPS) historical preserves, Civil War sites, and city parkland. Groundwork Anacostia’s main focus has been to improve this parkland, as well as local derelict lots and vacant land, in order to improve quality of life and access for neighborhood residents, while also offering innovative education and job training programs for area youth.
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The UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation presents Creating a Complete Los Angeles River Greenway: Stories and Guidance (Guide) to recognize the achievements of those who have successfully developed portions of the Los Angeles River (LA River) greenway while providing advice … Continued
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As different parts of the country become drier, wetter or hotter, community leaders and citizens are looking to green infrastructure to improve their community’s resiliency to the effects of climate change. In 2015, EPA convened charrettes, or intensive planning sessions, in … Continued
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This webinar was hosted by the Urban Waters Learning Network and recorded on Aug. 02, 2016 Are you working to reclaim urban waterways while occasionally bumping up against waterfront properties home to former industrial uses? Ever wonder how to get … Continued
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Few environmental projects focus community attention as dramatically as those that seek to create (or retrieve) parks and trails along urban waterways. The Groundwork network has achieved significant success on such projects, including the Saw Mill River Daylighting Park in Yonkers, NY; the Spicket River Greenway in Lawrence, MA; the Elizabeth River Greenway in Elizabeth, NJ; and the Mill Creek Greenway in Cincinnati.
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Funded by EPA’s Urban Waters Small Grants, this guide was developed by the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments and Merrimack River Watershed Council, documenting the work they were doing directly with the environmental justice community to develop an effective program … Continued
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Recorded webinar that presents inititives by three urban waters organizations that have succeeded in building trust and engagement among non-English speakers.
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Recorded webinar describing the technical services and support provided by the National Park Services’ Rivers, Trails, Conservation Assistance (RTCA) program. Presenters: National Park Service, Rivers & Trails Conservation Assistance program staff.
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Recorded webinar offering guidance, tips and successful examples of engaging elected officials in urban waters work. Presenters include: Sven-Erik Kaiser, U.S. EPA Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations; Keely Monroe, Alliance for Justice; and Rick Magder, Groundwork Hudson Valley.
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A guide to help communities better manage stormwater while achieving other environmental, public health, social, and economic benefits. Download this resource
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The book focuses on environmental education programs that contribute to human well-being and environmental integrity in cities.
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This report describes the current activities, leading practices, and achievements of sustainable communities. Download this resource
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Recorded webinar presenting Baltimore’s Green Pattern Book, a tool created as part of the city’s Growing Green Initiative to help guide the greening of vacant land by city agencies, nonprofit organizations and individual residents.
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Recorded webinar that reviews the effectiveness of various buffer types in addressing many river issues and shares “lessons learned” in implementing buffer restoration or protection projects.
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The Citizen-led Monitoring of Urban Wetland Restoration in New Orleans creates active wetland advocates by placing technology into community members’ hands, especially in those of low-income Lake Pontchartrain residents. This effort was supported in part by a $50,000 Urban Waters Small Grant funded by EPA.
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In 2014 The University of Arizona (UA) received support from the U.S EPA in the form of funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF).
This funding was used to supplement the restoration efforts conducted through Project WET; a project of the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension – Maricopa County. With this NFWF funding, UA was able to weave Monarch Butterfly habitat creation into their existing program.
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Heartland Conservation Alliance (HCA) was created as an alliance of diverse partners who share a vision and work collectively to conserve natural areas, connect people to nature and convene partners. Their mission is creating multiple benefits for people by focusing on projects that save Kansas City’s valuable natural resources and give them back to benefit the community—“ecological democracy.”
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While ECO-Action serves as the lead for the project there are many partners working together to address stormwater and combined sewer overflow impact on Proctor Creek. Green infrastructure concepts and principals are being infused into the Clark Atlanta University dual engineering courses. This marks a milestone in the efforts led by ECO-Action to increase awareness among faculty, staff, and students about the importance of green infrastructure and the type of positive impacts these practices and principals can have at a local level.
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Funded by an EPA Urban Waters Small Grant, the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association and the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council teamed up with the Rhode Island Dept. of Environmental Mgmt. and other partners to develop a fish community monitoring program for Rhode Island’s wadeable urban rivers and streams. Program goals are to assess changes to habitat health, target locations for water quality restoration initiatives, engage community members in citizen science initiatives, and provide water quality information to the public.
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In 2013 and after 12 years in the making, EPA released its Proposed Cleanup Plan for the Superfund site, starting the clock on a 105-day public review and comment period. This highly technical document recommended a mix of technologies for addressing the river’s toxic sediments and meeting the four objectives of the cleanup, which include protecting the health of people who consume seafood.
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Recorded webinar presenting 3 successful efforts to convert brownfields and vacant city lots into parks, green spaces and greenways.
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Water quality is not the most zany or attractive topic in which to engage citizens. They know it’s important, but how, really, can they affect change? The Galveston Bay Foundation has launched a successful suite of programs —matching playful and provacative messaging with down-to-earth behaviors—that will empower local citizens to improve water quality in the bay.
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Each model site is a place where neighborhood surface waters (streams and lakes), receives water runoff from storms (stormwater), and becomes an outdoor learning site for investigations and actions by students from nearby schools. Thus Keep It Clean (KIC) – Neighborhood Environmental Trio (NET) means a program focusing on clean water (KIC), each with a school, park (preferably with a recreation center), and an accessible body of water or waterway within a few minutes walk of each other (NET).
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In a city like New Orleans, community is everything. Walks down the street, one can simply speak to everyone passing by, and everyone would keep an eye out for one another. Everyone was each other’s neighbor. Eight years ago, prior to Hurricane Katrina, walking around the Lower Ninth Ward meant passing several homes on every block.
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Plaster Creek is a 14 mile-long stream that drains a watershed covering approximately 58 square miles, in metropolitan Grand Rapids, Michigan. The creek initially flows through agricultural lands, then commercial and residential areas, and finally an industrial zone and low-income neighborhoods before emptying into the Grand River.
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In 2012, the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments and the Merrimack River Watershed Council received a $60,000 EPA Urban Waters Small Grant to create a stormwater education program for municipal staff, local officials and community members.
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The Urban Waters Federal Partnership, started in 2011, has provided a formal, coordinated effort to restore the river. Cities along the entire length of the river have seen the benefits of partnership projects with improved green space and water quality.
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Recorded webinar that explores the many forms that environmental education may take in urban environments, including case studies from Colorado, Texas and California. Presenters include: Donny Roush, (EarthForce), Charlene Bohanon (Galveston Bay Foundation) and Tamara Doan (California Coastal Commission).
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Youth have been central to Groundwork’s urban waters reclamation efforts.
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