TRAVERSE CITY -- The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative has an ambitious goal: create the next generation of Great Lakes stewards whose advocacy will support the lakes' long-term sustainability.
The Grand Traverse Conservation District will be an integral part of this effort thanks to a $200,000 grant from the Great Lakes Fishery Trust. The money launches the Grand Traverse Stewardship Initiative, which will bring students and teachers together with local environmental organizations. Leveraging youth and expertise, education and enthusiasm, this local initiative will both promote awareness about and address environmental issues.
The 20-month grant from the Fishery Trust is an investment for the future, said Colleen Masterson-Bzdok, education director at the Grand Traverse Conservation District and the new initiative's project manager.
"The idea is to get students working with community partners and having a real world application, not just a classroom experience," she said. "One of the things I'm really excited about is getting students involved in real research."
The Grand Traverse initiative is one of eight hubs in the state. Local partnering organizations include Inland Seas Education Association, the Traverse City Area Public Schools and the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District. In addition, more than a dozen other area environmental-related organizations who participated in the planning last year will join the effort.
"There's so many great organizations that do such great things and they all have sort of their own little niche, but something like this brings together a lot of organizations that are going to be able (to) provide different pieces of the project," said Christine Crissman, education director for Inland Seas in Suttons Bay. "It's such a big undertaking, it's definitely something that one organization cannot do by itself."
The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative is envisioned by the Fishery Trust to be a 10-year, $10 million dollar project. The eight hubs around the state will network and share ideas, problems and solutions, working cooperatively to streamline the initiative while also tailoring it to local needs.
"Bring them in touch with each other, so they can learn from one another and it's not eight isolated projects," said Mary Whitmore, program coordinator of the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative.
The Grand Traverse Stewardship Initiative will initially start by working with three to five target schools and build from there. Teachers welcome to participate may be drawn from across the curriculum, not just science teachers.
The "place-based" education should expand classrooms and strengthen communities by taking kids into the community. There they will learn both academic content as well as practice both problem-solving skills and communication skills. Exploration, critical thinking and community service are the keys for student participants.
"It's difficult for teachers to do that all on their own, they don't necessarily have the time or expertise," Masterson-Bzdoc said. "We will want the project to have a hands-on component, a good example could be a stream bank erosion project, including assessment and rehabilitation."
The history of the Great Lakes Fishery Trust's program is returning to its roots: the new statewide Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative grew out of a pilot program at Northwestern Michigan College, the DTE Freshwater Institute, funded by the DTE Energy Foundation.
"That proved the model and we modified it a little bit based on the evaluation of the institute and formed the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative," Whitmore said.
For more information on the Grand Traverse Conservation District, contact 941-0960 or www.natureiscalling.org. For more information on the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative, see www.glstewardship.org.
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