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. Four thousand (4,000) CD ROMs with accompanying teachers guides will be distributed to Colorado teachers through the Colorado Foundation for Agriculture's network of educators receiving the Colorado Reader series. The Colorado Division of Wildlife will also promote the "A River's Journey - Water in the West" in their newsletter to 20,000 teachers. The Colorado Department of Education will provide information about obtaining this CD to their environmental educators. The Denver Post Newspapers in Education will distribute "A River's Journey" to approximately 300 teachers using their Colorado Agriculture program and promote it to another 37,000 educators. . Estimated distribution of the CD ROMs will be: Classrooms participating in Colorado Readers Classrooms participating in farm days/water festivals FFA classrooms Cooperative Extension County Farm Bureaus The Denver Post Soil Conservation Districts Water Conservation Districts Libraries Historical Societies Federal and State Agencies Total 1,200 400 100 100 500 300 100 400 250 50 600 4,000 An educated public makes decisions and choices that are based on factual and historical . information. In dealing with such a vital resource as water it is imperative that citizen involvement be based on knowledge and not emotion, and that the view be expanded from "how does it affect me" to "how does it affect all of us." Lack of understanding about water issues produces poor solutions to managing this vital resource, Better understanding based on factual and historic information should result in better solutions for managing water and related 'natural resources like agricultural ground, As Coloradoans are being asked to make impOr:(ant decisions about our water resources at the ballot box, a more informed citizenry shouldiresult in wise choices in way this resource is used. It would be ideal to have one project that pould accomplish a total understanding and respect of the issues, it is not a . reality. Howevet, expanding awareness and emphasiZing the need to know information in order to make good, well balanced decision can prepare today's students to take responsibility for decisions that will affect their neighborhood, community, county, state and country. The quality of our life in Colorado is dependent upon how we use our land and water. Will we be able to sustain the quality of life we now nave? Will we be able to provide basic resources to our population as it grows? Can w~ continue to grow and thrive as a community? We face serious decisions about water in the future. The structures we built so we could use this resource in the past will determine how we can use it and what we can do with it in the future. We have created a complex system of canals, ditches, reservoirs, dams, hydroelectric power plants, recreational lakes, wetlands with a system of rules and laws that . regulate use. Understanding its history will help us develop a sustainable future.