PROJECT SUMMARY
Water Outreach Education – Facilitating Access to Resources and Best Practices (BEPs) is a collaborative effort of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Cooperative Extension program, the University of Wisconsin, and other public and private clean and safe water partners.
The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), a former U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) agency, was established in 1994 to manage federal funding for agricultural research, higher education, and community outreach. In 2009, it was reorganized as the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).
Goals:
- Identify Best Education Practices (BEPs).
- Promote the use of BEPs for water-management education.
- Improve access to education resources and strategies.
The project was conducted by staff of the University of Wisconsin, Environmental Resources Center (ERC) [reorganized as the UW-Madison Natural Resources Institute in 2016], under the guidance of a project advisory team of natural resource management, outreach, and education professionals from across the country. Elaine L. Andrews, Principal Investigator.
Project funds were provided by the USDA/CSREES National Program Office for Water Quality [reorganized as the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) in 2009].
Water Outreach Project – Description
The Water Outreach Education project strives to develop and promote best education practices (BEPs) for water education and to improve access to education resources and strategies. Our goal is to increase public understanding and involvement in community decision-making about water issues through improved education practices and improved access to education resources. Project activities reflect advice provided by federal agency clean and safe water partners and a national network of water education organizations created and supported by the work of several national organizations over the last decade.
Initiatives leading to the Water Outreach Education project are further described on the Convenor website. See:
- Community-Based Education [link]
- Water Education [link]
- Youth Water Education [link]
Water Outreach Project – Purpose
Surveys show that we all want clean water and we’re willing to pay for it. But it’s all too easy for economic development pressures to be seen as a competing priority. Community leaders, teachers, youth, property owners, farmers, forest industry employees, water recreation businesses, and industries that use water, each make day-to-day decisions that impact the environment. Cleaning up our water depends, in practice, on creating local understanding and partnerships that balance environmental and economic needs. But how do we create partnerships, if the public doesn’t understand how these priorities can, in fact, be balanced?
Community involvement has been identified as the key to effectiveness of clean and safe water. National and local plans are designed to improve water quality in communities across the nation. Water Outreach Education products connect natural resource professionals with resources they can use to help groups and citizens improve their understanding and skills. In addition, the project:
- Translated research into practical strategies.
- Provided access to education materials.
- Identified education needs for specific water problems.
- Brought nationally recognized water educators together to develop a national plan for water education.
Water Outreach Project – Products
Products are designed to help natural resource professionals choose appropriate educational techniques and resources and demonstrate that education is a valued service.
BEP Project products:
1) Building the Case for Value
- Best Education Practices: Study of Provider Needs
- Model Education Techniques
- Synthesis of Significant Research: The BEP Decision Tree
- Literature Search for Audience-Specific BEPs
2) Organizing a System for Access
- Knowledge Management Theory and Application
- BEP Pilot Web Site Content and Design
- 2004 Symposium Proceedings, Best Education Practices (BEPs) for Water Outreach Professionals, University of Wisconsin – Madison, June 2-4, 2004
- 2005 Symposium: Best Education Practices for Water Quality, USDA/CSREES National Water Quality Conference, Feb. 9, 2005
Water Outreach Project – Partners
Project partners provided advice and resources, helped shape project goals, and evaluated the Water Outreach Education pilot web site and products. Partners also provided networking communications and advice about the interests of the professionals they work with in education.
Partners for the Water Outreach Education Project include the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)/Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), two national nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), a state department of natural resources, and Cooperative Extension in California, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
EPA Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds, https://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/organization-chart-office-water
EPA Office of Environmental Education, https://www.epa.gov/education
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, https://ohiodnr.gov/
Ohio State University Extension, Community Development, https://comdev.osu.edu/
The Groundwater Foundation, http://www.groundwater.org/
USDA/CSREES Water Quality Program, https://www.nifa.usda.gov/
[The USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) previously led the National Water Quality Program, which integrated research and outreach through Land-Grant Universities to mitigate agricultural nonpoint source pollution. CSREES has since been integrated into the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). Information about the previous program is available at, http://www.usawaterquality.org]
University of California Extension, https://caes.ucdavis.edu/outreach/ce
University of Nebraska Extension, https://extension.unl.edu/
University of Wisconsin Extension, https://extension.wisc.edu/
Water Education Foundation, https://www.watereducation.org/