WaterSmart Schools
by Dawn Doering | Jul 19, 2022
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| 1 Comment
Summary:
Schools are incubators of creative minds and large consumers of water, while schoolgrounds create a lot of stormwater runoff. The runoff adds to stormwater pollution. Why not make use of those creative minds for saving water? They can ponder the best ways to save water at their school: conserving water or reducing their water blueprint by reducing runoff (or both!).
About You
About You
First Name
Dawn
Last Name
Doering
Country
United States, MN, Anoka County
City
Blaine
About Your Organization
Organization Name
Coon Creek Watershed District
Organization Website
www.cooncreekwd.org
Your Idea
Name your idea
WaterSmart Schools
Describe how you would use $15,000 to help your community become aware of and address water issues in Minnesota.
We would provide grant(s) up to $15,000 to schools in our District that provide within a certain time period the top cost-effective plans to save water either by conserving water, by saving rainwater (including rain gardens), or by re-use. Ideally, the ideas would come from the students.
How do you define your "community"?. How are water issues affecting your community?
Our community includes all the citizens within our district boundary. We have had drought conditions for several years, and though this year we are getting ample rains, there is still concern about lack of adequate recharge of our aquifers. Our area is ripe for recharge as it is on the Anoka Sand Plain.
Innovation
Describe how your idea is creative.
Schools are incubators of creative minds and large consumers of water, while schoolgrounds create a lot of stormwater runoff. The runoff adds to stormwater pollution. Why not make use of those creative minds for saving water? They can ponder the best ways to save water at their school: conserving water or reducing their water blueprint by reducing runoff (or both!).
Impact
Describe how how you expect your idea to make a difference in your community.
1) reduce either: water consumption or stormwater runoff pollution
2) get young minds working on solving a real-world, close-to-home problem
3) create awareness and, hopefully, inspiration and action by students and those around them
Sustainability and Growth
Describe how your idea will "stick" in your community and how you think it could be repeated in other communities.
The students will definitely remember making a difference in their own community, and the community can remember it by making their project(s) known on their website, and we would definitely have it on our website and develop outreach materials on it to share with whomever would like it.
With a proven concept, other communities could repeat the grants- or make it a contest!- and garner funds to dole out grants or prize money to schools or churches or similar organizations to generate and implement WaterSmart ideas.
 | Mikey Bang said: Watersmart schools sound interesting and also this can encourage students to give value and be aware about the facts on how to preserve ... about this Competition Entry. - 846 days ago read more > |
 | Dawn Doering updated this Competition Entry. - 1773 days ago |
 | Dawn Doering submitted this idea. - 1773 days ago |
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