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A five-year Strategic Plan for
Georgia River Network was created in 2006, as a continuance
to the Strategic
Plan created in 2000.
Georgia River Network is
working to ensure a clean water legacy by engaging
and empowering Georgians
to protect and restore our rivers from the mountains
to the coast.
Our vision for the future
of Georgia’s rivers
is dependent on an active, effective citizen-led
watershed group in every watershed in Georgia. These
groups will help to protect and restore our rivers
to their greatest potential as vital resources of
the state. We envision natural, free flowing rivers
with a rich array of native species, protected buffers,
and public access. Our rivers should be free from
pollution, such that all of our rivers are classified
as fishable and swimmable. The healthy river ecosystem
should be recognized and valued in its own right,
in addition to the recognition that healthy rivers
provide a valuable economic asset through recreation,
tourism, and other ecosystem functions. In addition,
our rivers should be aesthetically appealing in all
parts of the state.
Georgia River Network is becoming the first contact
for citizens seeking to protect and restore the streams
and rivers within their communities. Georgia River
Network will undertake an aggressive effort toward
building a truly integrated statewide network and
will be the voice for concerns that transcend watersheds.
The vision of Georgia River Network is to be a democratic
and transparent organization with a continually growing
membership of individuals and grassroots community
organizations, such that we broaden the base for
clean water efforts in Georgia. We will be a professionally
staffed, well-endowed and funded organization that
is well known for being honest and credible, with
a high level of integrity and political clout. In
short, the Georgia River Network will be the model
for other successful efforts throughout the southeast.
1. Supporting Local Watershed Groups
Central to Georgia River Network mission is providing
ongoing support, training, and assistance to local
watershed organization. It is through the strong
and effective local watershed organizations that
citizens are engaged in protecting Georgia’s
rivers.
1.1. Continue to provide training, assistance, and
technical support to strengthen local and regional
groups across Georgia. This includes assistance in
formation, meeting facilitation, strategic planning
assistance, technical and policy information and
training, and organizational development consultations.
1.2. Facilitate information transfer among watershed
groups through the Annual Conference, GRN News Stream
and Newsletter, watershed group directory, and the
website.
1.3. Convene an informative, popular annual conference
as a regular forum for clean water advocates from
across Georgia to exchange information and to receive
skills and issues training from experts. This conference
also provides a place where citizen stakeholders
can meet with one another and strengthen their resource
protection networks.
1.4. Convene regional workshops on topics of importance.
1.5. Collect (and create
when needed) relevant resources, information, and
tools that are useful to Georgia’s
watershed groups, and disseminate directly via the
website and newsletters.
2. Work Towards Local Watershed Groups in all Watersheds
across Georgia
Local watershed groups are vital to long term protection
of Georgia’s waterways. We recognize some watersheds
lack watershed groups. Our experience indicates GRN
is unlikely to be successful in directing the establishment
of a local watershed group. Analyses indicate two
factors needed for establishing new watershed groups:
solid on-the-ground leadership, and a pressing issue.
To this end, GRN will work to identify issues for
local groups to build around and continue outreach
to citizens to build leadership on the ground.
2.1 Provide needed assistance to newly forming watershed
groups and foster the development of new groups in
the following ways:
• Identify waterways
lacking watershed groups.
• Monitor issues in
underserved watersheds to identify likely issues
new watershed groups could
form around.
• Expand grassroots public support for water protection
through activities such as Paddle Georgia, regional
meetings and conferences, and GRN outreach tools
targeting watersheds in need of watershed groups.
3. Providing Guidance in Local Policy
Recognizing the influence that strong comprehensive
local policies, land use and others, have on the
long-term protection of Georgia’s waters, GRN
will pursue and support local groups to influence
local watershed protection policies. This new initiative
will develop assist with tools, sample policies,
resources, and assistance to advocate for good land
use policy.
3.1. Identify and share best practices of land use
planning by sharing success stories and model best
practice policies.
3.2. Providing training in local advocacy and campaign
planning techniques. This may also include developing
informational materials for local advocacy.
3.3. Identify resources and information about local
land use issues and potential solutions?.
4. Serve as a Voice for Local Watershed Groups at
the State and Federal Level
GRN is in a unique position to enable local watershed
groups to have a voice on statewide water issues.
4.1. Serve as a voice of and liaison to local watershed
groups across the state.
4.2. Communicate with and marshal support from
local watershed groups to effect state policy where
opportunities arise.
4.3. Participate in state level activities
• Actively participate in and support the Georgia Water
Coalition
• Monitor and comment on important policy decisions
by state agencies via conversations, letters and
public hearings/meetings
• Monitor decisions of the Georgia Legislature and
provide input on relevant policy decisions, via letters,
meetings, visits to the statehouse during the legislative
session
• Serve on stakeholder committees, when appropriate
• Serve as plaintiffs when relevant and key litigation
needs arise
5. Communication and Outreach
Informed and engaged citizens on water related issues
afford one of the best protections for Georgia’s
waters. To this end, GRN will continue to provide
information to the public about water related issues
and watershed work. We offer opportunities for the
public to become active in protecting watersheds
within the state.
5.1. Grow and continue to improve the Paddle GA event.
5.2. Continually develop and update the website.
5.3. Continue to provide high-quality,
informative newsletters to members and local watershed
groups
across the state. Our monthly electronic News Stream
targets those working on water quality on a day-to-day
basis; Confluence, our quarterly newsletter, is targeted
to members and the general public.
5.4. Support efforts of other statewide outreach
programs such as Rivers Alive and GA Adopt-A-Stream.
6. Membership and Fundraising
In order to be sustainable for the long term, GRN
will continue to build its membership base and diversify
funding sources. Goals given below will supplement
the Fundraising Strategic Plan (Appendix 2).
6.1. Continue to diversify funding sources to be
less dependent on foundation support. To this end,
a yearly fundraising plan is developed by the Staff
and Board.
6.2. Expand Georgia River
Network’s individual
membership for financial support and programmatic
purposes.
6.3. Cultivate more major donors and corporate partners.
7. Organizational Development and Administration
In order for GRN to efficiently and successfully
fulfill its mission, it is necessary for GRN to maintain
to develop the organization and increase capacity.
7.1. Improve the effectiveness and representation
of the Board of Directors. The Board and staff will
continually work to develop the Board; to expand
its diversity in terms of geography, gender, experience,
background, and knowledge; and to increasingly draw
on the strengths, skills, ideas, and leadership of
individual members. We will increase the use of subcommittees
of the Board to conduct work between quarterly meetings.
7.2. Expand the GRN staff in order to implement
our long term goals and deliver services. A third
staff person, the Watershed Support Coordinator,
was hired in 2006.
7.3. Ensure adequate infrastructure to support staff
and GRN over time.
• Annually evaluate the Executive Director and staff
• Annually develop a budget, cash flow projections
and coordinating fundraising plan. Continually evaluate
and monitor all to ensure income and expenses meet
projections and that future needs will be met
•
Conduct an annual review of the prior fiscal year’s
financial reports
• Annually develop a plan of work for both the board
and staff
• Identify and plan for needed professional development
for all staff in the annual plan of work
• Identify and plan for needed training for the board
of directors in the annual plan of work
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