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Greetings!
Thank you to everyone that completed our insurance survey.
What did we learn?
Most groups are paying less than $500 for their liability insurance and more than $500 for directors and officers insurance.
No surprise, groups with staff and offices are paying more. The highest rates reported were $700 for liability and $1,000 for D&O.
Events are creating a tricky situation. Some liability polices include basic events such as river cleanups and canoe trips. Other polices require additional insurance for each event. The additional insurance per event is usually $100-150. Be sure to talk with your insurance agent to be clear about their definition of an event.
We are researching the possibility of one or two insurance companies offering a Wisconsin river group standard policy. Once we work out the details, we will send out an announcement.
If you would like more information about insurance take a look at our Liability and Risk Management tool on our website. We also have a second tool that includes risk management tips for groups with staff.
As always, please contact me with any questions. I am here to help. Regards,
Allison Werner
Local Groups Program Manager
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DNR River Grants
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Now is the time to start working on your River Protection Grant
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Bad River Watershed Association river monitoring
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proposal. There are many steps to complete well before the May 1 deadline. Allison Werner can help you through the process. Contact her for assistance soon. Once you have determined the scope of the work you need grant support for:
- Review the grant guidelines
- Contact your DNR River Grant Coordinator (Pages 3-4 in the guidelines) to discuss your project. Be sure to ask him/her for ways to improve your project. (If you are not an approved River Management Organization yet, talk to your coordinator about the process. It is best to apply before May 1)
- Talk to your partners and get letters of support. Will your partners provide financial support for your project? In-kind contributions are fine. Be sure to include their contribution in your budget and have them explain the contribution in the letter of support.
- Have your board approve the authorizing resolution (see DNR's template, page 27) no later than your April board meeting.
- Review the grant ranking questions (Pages 28-30) and make sure your narrative adequately explains how your proposal meets these criteria.
Again, contact Allison Werner to discuss the grant process.
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15 Ways You Can Save Your River
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Check out our recently updated
15 Ways You Can Save Your River tool!
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Friends of the Mukwonago River having fun raising awareness about their group in local parade
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When starting a new organization to protect a river that isn't facing a "looming crisis," knowing how to begin implementing the goals of your organization can be difficult. Similarly, watershed groups with long histories sometimes forget about the many ways they can protect their river.
This tool offers a list of actions that your group can take to discover, promote, and advocate healthy rivers and watersheds. While not all of these activities may be applicable to your own organization, we hope the list will stir up some creative ways to accomplish your goals and provide a stepping off point from which your group can begin its work.
River Alliance of Wisconsin staff can provide you technical assistance with any of the projects mentioned in the toolkit - contact us for help!
This tool is part of our Watershed Advocate Toolkit. Other tool topics include sample bylaws, environmental communication, and fundraising.
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River Rally 2013
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 This year's River Rally will be in St. Louis from May 17-20. River Rally offers more than 80 educational sessions, networking, and fun! Workshop topics include: managing stormwater, reclaiming urban waters, monitoring CAFOs, reducing nutrient pollution, and much more.
Wisconsin has been well represented at Rally in the past. We hope to see many familiar faces again this year. To help off-set your group's cost to attend Rally, River Alliance will offer ground transportation to Wisconsin river groups.Please contact Allison Werner by April 22 if you would like to join our caravan.
River Network does offer scholarships. The scholarship application deadline is March 15.
Rally ho!
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| Have Questions or Need Assistance? | |
Call us:
608-257-2424 X 113
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Save the Date
6th Wisconsin Citizen-based Monitoring Conference
April 5-6th
Hotel Mead
Wisconsin Rapids
| If you attended the Stream Monitoring Symposium in the past, this conference is for you.
This year River Alliance, Water Action Volunteers, DNR, and UWEX are teaming up with the Citizen-based Monitoring Network of Wisconsin and Wisconsin's Master Naturalist Program to host a conference for monitoring coordinators and participants in all types of citizen science projects.
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Assess Your Organization
| We highly recommend River Network's new organizational assessment tool.
Get a quick snapshot of your group's strengths and needs.
View the questions
River Alliance staff can help your group review the results and make a plan to address any issues that your group wants to tackle. Contact for assistance.
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