CWN ProjectWET 50%ProgressReport

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Water Efficiency Grant Program Mid-Term Project WET Grant Report (CWN) Water, .Healthy IJeople guides ,offer in-depth, action oriented teaching nlatc rial s on water conservation and. water (luality respectively. ~.rhe Colorado Project WET Coordinator will utilize these resources to provide in-dcpth and l()calized .materials to educators throughout the state. Challenges Alth()ughwe are reaching a largc nlltnbe.r of teachers, C:\'X7N \vill n.ot reach as many as originally prcclictcd. O.riginalnumbers were llased off surpassil1g Colorado's Project WILD numbers in a short atnollnt ()f time, given h.ow important water is. However, IJ.roject \VILD has 6 staff, a significantly larger budget, and Colorado's \VII,I) program is at the forefront of wildlife edtlcation for the COlIUtry. T.herefore original estimates "\vcre not realistic with the given staff and btldget. Nonetheless, C\VN has grown the program, especially in depth, since .many .more of the workshops britlg local field trip and expel1 reso'urces to bear duringmulriple day trainings focused on local concerns~ I'!'hese trainings take significandy more plilllning and coordination that the typical 6 hour llroject WET training. Al10ther challenge is reaching broa(Uy across the state. i\1though workshops range from I.la JUtlta.) to Durango, to Rifle, there are significant barriers~ Some rural communities ate small and spread far enough apart that, \vithout staff able to directly outreach with these C()tnmunities, some planned works.hops have not garnered enough teachers. Proiect WET across the nation Colo.rado's program can be more completely lln(ierstood by looking at how l}roject \VE:~r is implemented across the countt)". Pr()ject WET has fully opcrational programs across the Unite(l States an(-} in 50 nations around the \varId, reaching over 30,000 teachers globally each year. I)roject \VET in C:olorado has a fairly large presence considering its complex history in the state and unstable funding sources. For the past 6 years Colorado Project WET has I}rovided water education and professional developluent workshops for 300-350 teachers annually across the state. \Vith continllcd and secure nlnding and sponsorshiI) we are confident that Colorado Project \VE~I' will grow to be a nationalleadcr in the field. l\n analysis of some of the most successful Project WE1-1 programs around the United States illtlstrates a fc\v trends that are essential to a successful program. 1) Strong support and sponsorship from the state's Department of Natural Res()urces 2) Support from the state alliance fo.r environmental education 3) Strongpartnersmp ,vith state coordinators fot Projects \VILD and Learning 1 'rce State Teachers Trained Reported Annual Details Annually Operating Budget Arizona 734 $400,000 Multiple DNR staff Co liforni a 982 $158,000 (additional $ 1 staff I 400 foci litators, from sponsored workshops) sponsored workshops Colorado 350 $78,000 1 staff Georgia 772 $26,000 (hard costs only) 3DNR staff New York 922 $244,000 3 regiono'l staff Pennsylvania 840 $800,000 Multi pie staff ,P()rtllnately, in Colorado we have very established relationships\vith !)rojects WlI-iD and Learning 1"1'1ree as \vell a support from the Colorado l\lliance for Environmental E:ducatlon. We hope to have strong,. continuolls financial support from the C:olorado Wate! Consenration. Board to enSllrC the continued success and gro\vth of the Pr()ject WET in Colorado. Page 5