September is White River Festival month! The Ninth Annual White River Festival organized by ROW partner White River Alliance (WRA) celebrates the river, its tributaries, and the entire watershed that includes 16 Indiana counties. This year’s festival began with cleanups in Hamilton County, and continues with fishing trips from Muncie to Mounds State Park in Madison County, Monarch Tagging along the Urban Wilderness Trail, and much more. The festival culminates with the Second Annual Dragon Boat Races which brings this ancient Chinese tradition to the the shores of the White River in downtown Indy.
The White River Festival not only seeks to celebrate our watershed, but also to highlight the need for action to protect our waterways as the vital resources and community assets they are. As a lead up to Indiana Water Summit in July, WRA held three pre-summit forums which brought together dozens of water stakeholders: large water users, water managers, those who monitor water quality, and educators who communicate and engage adults and youth about the importance of the waterways.
On August 14 and 15, more than 200 Indiana Water Summit participants developed a “roadmap,” spanning across multiple water sectors, that highlights places for everyone to plug in to ensure a sustainable water future. “Leaders and policy-makers represent and act upon the values expressed by their constituents,” says Jill Hoffman, Executive Director of WRA. “If we want to ensure a strong water future, we need to build widespread awareness and allow that awareness to permeate our collective decision-making.”
You can start by joining us at this year’s Dragon Boat Races Saturday, September 28th beginning with opening ceremonies and concluding with an A Rising Tide “To the River” performance produced by Indy Convergence.
Continue to build a healthy water future for Indy by:
- Watching and sharing videos, Invasive Species and Watershed Wonder, to learn about the connection to cleaner water.
- Encouraging local schools, libraries, and other community institutions to include watershed programming for youth and adults.
- Using the ROW Illustrated Nature Guide with the whole family to engage the five senses in connecting to local waterways.
- Catching up on institutional and legislative efforts to protect the waterways, and learning about the policy process from Hoosier Environmental Council and The Nature Conservancy.
- Taking action with one (or more!) Clear Choices Clean Water Pledge at home, having conversations with friends, family, neighbors and kids about pledges they can make towards a cleaner water future.