Join PA IPL for a series that invites you to wander through Pennsylvania’s watersheds – their problems, their people, and how we can protect them. We’ll hear from experts at each session including grassroots leaders and organizers, academics, riverkeepers, protection agencies, and congregations. Together, let’s get inspired to practice faith-based stewardship of the waters that flow through the Keystone state!

“What’s a watershed?” you might ask. Watersheds are “areas or ridges of land that separate waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas”. We have six of them here in Pennsylvania, and everybody lives in one! This seminar series is designed to be an introduction to watersheds so don’t be intimidated if you don’t know much (yet!), but people with watershed literacy are also welcome and encouraged to join! There will be interactive pieces of the seminar series and the more cross-learning we can share with each other, the better.

In conjunction with the seminar series, we are launching our inaugural Watershed Circle. The program is designed as a supportive cohort for leaders seeking to explore watershed project opportunities on congregation and community land. This 6 month program will begin in January 2025 and is facilitated by the PA IPL team with support from watershed experts! Our first cohort is limited to just 15 congregations/community groups so we encourage you to begin planning and preparing now! Applications will open in November.

Dates: October 29, November 19, December 10, January 14 7PM. 

1 hour program with optional regional breakout sessions afterwards.

Session 1 – October 29, 2024

Title: Watershed Stewardship 

Description:

What is a watershed? What is watershed stewardship? As our climate is changing, we are seeing impacts to these vital ecosystems. Congregations, community groups, and people of faith and conscience have an important role to play in caring for and stewarding our watersheds. Join us for a launch conversation with experts who will share more about how we define watersheds, the climate impacts we are witnessing in our Pennsylvania watersheds, who these impacts are affecting most, and how people of faith and conscience are rising to the call to steward our shared waters.

Speakers for this session include:

Robin Lewis, Director of Climate Equity for DMV Interfaith Power & Light

Doug Miller, Retired Geography Professor, Penn State University

Greg Williams, volunteer & visionary for PA Plants Native!

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1028300964867?aff=oddtdtcreator 

Session 2 – November 19, 2024

Title: Watersheds and their Problems

Description:

In this session of our Wandering Watersheds seminar series, we are hosting an interactive conversation with some of Pennsylvania’s waterkeepers! Waterkeepers are a crucial part of keeping Pennsylvania waters safe and healthy for all of us. The work of waterkeepers varies as much as our watersheds do! Our waterkeepers will share more about their work and the biggest problems facing Pennsylvania’s waterways. Ever wondered what the most common types of water pollutants are? Wonder no longer as we hear from the experts who spend their time intimately acquainted with the beautiful and the ugly of our waterways.

Speakers for this session include:

Ted Evgeniadis, Executive Director, Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper

MORE COMING SOON!

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1028626699147?aff=oddtdtcreator 

Session 3 – December 10, 2024

Title: Watersheds and their Protection

Description:

In our third seminar, we will hear from folks who hold responsibility to protect and regulate Pennsylvania’s waterways. A representative from the PA Department of Environmental Protection as well as the Environmental Protection Agency Region 3 will join us on this call to share about the water work their offices are engaged in. We will additionally hear from experts in water policy and conservation about some of the ways they are working on the ground and in the halls of power to enact positive change for our waterways.

Speakers for this session include:

Amani Reid, Office of Environmental Justice, PA Department of Environmental Protection 

Michael Mehrazar, Advocacy Manager, PennFuture

Lindsey Walker, Senior Manager Education & Community Conservation, National Wildlife Federation

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1028629838537?aff=oddtdtcreator 

Session 4 – January 14, 2025

Title: Watersheds and their People 

Description:

In our final session in this series, we will learn from the experience of communities who have embarked on watershed stewardship journeys. We will hear the stories of four congregations, each will share about a watershed project they undertook, what inspired them to do it, and what impacts this has had on their community. We will also hear from Monte Garber at Stroud Water Research Center about some small and big steps that congregations can take to begin stewarding waters in their local community.

Speakers for this session include:

Monte Garber, Watershed Restoration Coordinator, Stroud Water Research Center

Representative from Akron Mennonite, Akron PA

MORE COMING SOON!

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1028648193437?aff=oddtdtcreator