Water Division

Since the formation of The Horinko Group, we have brought focus and creativity to environmental remediation. Remediation is the intersection among natural resources, technology, regulation, and sustainability. Our tools are innovation, strategic alliances, and established expertise grounded in public and private ventures. In a world where renewable and non-renewable resources are interconnected, we find ourselves at a juncture where it is necessary and prudent to expand our focus to a broader view in order to programmatically address the challenges of our water world - The Horinko Group's Water Division is our path forward.

Our View

Water is ubiquitous, serving as a common thread connecting all aspects of life.  As the planet's most precious natural resource, its quality and availability are core determinants of individual and community quality of life. However, water resource issues are typically regional, interjurisdictional, and dispersed. The challenges and actions needed to sustain our nation's water resources are geographically such that both federal and local attention is required and an integration of planning and regional governance across programs, sectors, and jurisdictions seems inevitable.

While we lack a national water policy, we have a number of national programs that can be better integrated and complimented by a strong grassroots stewardship ethic borne out of an effort to raise public water awareness and civic engagement so as to transform water users into water stewards.  As an interjurisdictional public good that must be appreciated and managed first as a public resource, protecting our water future will take stewardship from local, regional, state, and federal levels, in addition to promoting individual responsibility.

The Horinko Group believes in sustainability: a belief that our quality of life and the prosperity of our communities depend on our wise stewardship of our natural capital.  We believe that an inclusive leveraged or collaborative approach is critical for successful stewardship.

Like many others, we seek more effective collaborative models for success. Our niche is assisting with the creation and promotion of value-based collaborative relationship building that can be brought to scalable and replicable levels by the participating institutions. By identifying and connecting water achievers and demonstrating real results, we are uniquely equipped to facilitate effective collaboration and strategic alignment between public and private organizations committed to sustaining the quality and continued availability of our water resources.

Our Vision

Our vision is to promote water resources sustainability through effective and integrated water resource management. Through our support of institutions with the capacity to add real value to collaborative water ventures and with a commitment to connecting and aligning clients with a shared view of water resource sustainability, we are confident that we can build the case that effective integration is attainable. We feel strongly that the role of pathfinders in collaboration and partnering is critical to revealing the sustainable path forward.

Read further about the Pathfinder Concept - click here.

Our Water Summit 2010

The Horinko Group has distinguished itself as an organization that connects the dots: people to people, people to ideas, and ideas to action for practical results infused with values for sustainability. Consistent with its role as convener and connector, The Horinko Group's Water Division has announced its first executive-level networking opportunity for water leaders scheduled on April 13, 2010 in Washington, DC - Sustaining Our Water Resources Through Collaboration: A Summit Connecting Water Leaders Across Watersheds

The Summit focuses on two important regional freshwater systems, the Mississippi River and Chesapeake Bay, common challenges and opportunities, and what is needed to enhance their functioning as interdependent systems of natural and social capital.

Through close examination of watershed-based public and private initiatives and through a systems perspective, participants will expand their understanding of how best to empower organizations to more effectively engage in water planning and decision-making. The role that "social capital" plays in effective watershed-based collaboration, as well as the importance of waterside gateway communities in modeling best management practices, will also be explored.

We believe success in the Mississippi River valley and Chesapeake Bay is dependent on a shared vision and an integrated water resource management approach. More importantly, sustainable success will only be effectively realized through collaboration, strategic communication, and social networking. Partnerships must be relationship- and values-based, not simply a cost-shared enterprise. Social capital and its effective use will drive watershed-based efforts to system sustainability.

Our Path Forward

As follow-up to the 2010 Summit, The Horinko Group seeks to provide a new context for thinking and problem solving through a series of follow-up "Water Salons." A salon is a gathering of intellectual, social, political, and cultural leadership under the roof of an inspiring hostess or host to increase knowledge through conversation. We intend to utilize this salon concept for focused and creative thinking and discussion about confounding issues related to water resources, including the water-energy nexus. Water is the ideal subject for a salon because it is a multi-faceted subject that touches many sectors in a variety of ways and on a daily basis.

The clear goal of the salons will be to create an environment for taking concepts to action. The vision is for the salons to become a trusted platform to discuss, debate, and formulate effective models that communities and organizations can embrace that create tipping points for action.

Read further about The Horinko Group's Water Salons - click here

Pathfinders - Blazing the Trail

Background

Arriving at a National Water Strategy that successfully integrates water resource management across water sectors and watersheds will benefit greatly in the beginning by accounting for the contribution and role of local communities and private-public partnerships.

A thoughtful assessment and understanding of the successes and setbacks of collaborative pathfinders at the federal level, the community level, and in the private sector can reveal much about the path ahead. The lessons being learned in partnering at the community level must interface with the federal experience to ensure the processes are nuanced to account for the complexities in relationship building toward common direction, goal congruence, and effective outcomes.

We define the term pathfinder as "an individual or institution participating in a collaborative group that displays a unique ability to bring the group through stalemates, overcome barriers, find common ground, and generally be the difference leading to collaborative success...to find the path ahead."

Waterside Places Begin the Journey

In the public sector, communities located near iconic water features have the advantage of a strong and long-standing water heritage, a fundamental connection to indigenous water resources, and grassroots experience with water outputs. A few have demonstrated a dedication to advancing sustainable balance in the interaction between humans and water. Synergy is created when there is balance, but balanced benefits for environmental, social, and economic good are not happening everywhere. Often the advances are subtle and difficult to detect without close examination, but community-based centers of water excellence are indeed emerging and can be examined.

Likewise at the federal level, agencies with water-centric missions and responsibilities are being challenged to test traditional assumptions about interjurisdictional collaboration in order to produce water outputs that are scalable, replicable, and demonstrable, producing measureable and cumulative results at the system level for the good of the whole. Specific programs and projects undertaken with a strong federal presence are making headway. The federal sector is seeking effective and timely ways to leverage resources, build shared ownership, and seek alignment and integration with multiple players operating at local, state, and regional levels to integrate efforts across water sectors, to achieve sustainable outputs, and to shape a sustainable path forward for aquatic ecosystems.

Much of the Leadership that is bringing Federal and local institutions together effectively is happening with a bottom-up approach rooted at the local level and led by individuals or institutions with experience in value based collaborative enterprise.

Revealing Community Water Leaders

Water success stories across local, regional, and national levels in and across watersheds are ongoing and iterative. As we take a closer look, a number of common determinants emerge, including past experience, a high level of inter-organizational trust, reliance, open and regular communication, flexibility, a shared vision, adequate resources, early success, and an acceptable pace toward realizing outputs. Furthermore, we have seen much of this success tied back to local community water leaders that emerge as difference makers or what we refer to as "pathfinders."

Pathfinders become even more vital to the success of an endeavor when considering the wide variety of setbacks that often arise. For example, a certain amount of inertia is typical as new collaborators are folded in. Stops and starts can occur when strategic direction is refined and when divergent interests are considered. These critical points in the journey are opportunities for pathfinders to challenge institutional barriers and ineffective traditional approaches and develop innovative solutions.

The Horinko Group's Water Division is committed to recognizing and assisting local community-level water leaders or pathfinders in getting started and realizing repeated success. By connecting these individuals and institutions with the right mix of public and private partners, greater and timelier collaborative results will be achieved. Our group is committed to becoming a catalyst for creating this interaction, documenting and sharing our lessons learned throughout a number of watersheds and focusing on replicable, scalable results.

Water Summit 2010

Sustaining Our Water Resources Through Collaboration:

A Summit Connecting Water Leaders Across Watersheds
April 13, 2010
Washington, DC

Our Summit brought together senior-level representatives from the public, non-profit, and private sectors to discuss how public-private collaboration expands the reach and effectiveness of partnerships for success. Prominent leaders launched a dialogue about collaborative work at different scales for a number of systems including the Mississippi River and the Chesapeake Bay. Federal policy shapers also discussed how the public sector builds a culture of collaboration for success through federal programs.

View 2010 Summit Program (PDF)

The Summit draws on several concepts:

Pathfinders

Within each water system there may be "pathfinders" among the stakeholders. Pathfinders serve roles in federal and state water resource agencies, NGO's, academic institutions, and local communities. These are individuals who demonstrate the commitment, capacity, and competence to foster and broker alignment across organizations and to catalyze action at a local scale that can be demonstrated or replicated at broader scales. They connect the dots within a water system. Their presence within a collaborative group is often the difference maker. These leaders shape expectations for improvement and draw in additional stakeholders in pursuit of common objectives. They build broad consensus until a popular "tipping point" is reached to take efforts further and to improve upon them for the good of the entire system.

Pathfinders conduct effective outreach and communication to tell a compelling story about the good of the water system and the needs of the water system in order to raise awareness about the freshwater system and its collaborators as a system of interconnected elements. These leaders shape expectations for improvement and draw in additional stakeholders in pursuit of common objectives. They build broad consensus until a popular "tipping point" is reached to take efforts further and to improve upon them for the good of the entire system.

The Horinko Group believes that the identification and nurturing of pathfinders is crucial to bringing important water resource messaging to the mainstream, while fostering results that create critical mass in key communities around a river or bay. Pathfinders enable communities to emerge as hubs of energy, activity, and purpose. These hubs are marked by a high degree of water activity and a diverse array of sustainable water solutions that work together in a balanced and integrated way for greater effect. We are committed to demonstrating a commitment to grow next-generation water leaders for the system through education and outreach and want to challenge others to join in this endeavor.

Effective Water System Models

A central objective of our Summit was for participants to leave with a greater understanding of collaborative models that produce measurable results for an effective water-based system. We were determined to focus attention on formulas that connect players, places, and processes resulting in replicate outcomes that work at multiple scales (local, regional, national) for sustainable water outputs while also provoking future focused discussion on timely topics including integrated water resources management, adaptive management, system governance, system resiliency, and civic engagement.

Institutional leadership is in demand

Even pathfinders and institutions engaged in effective collaboration encounter barriers, bias toward inertia, and inefficiency. While much is happening and much success has been achieved, much more can happen if institutional leaders are watchful for opportunities to further encourage and incubate pathfinders within their own organizations, communities and other organizations.

Summit Proceedings

Nearly seventy leaders from public, non-profit, and private-sector water organizations gathered at The Horinko Group's offices in Washington, DC to hear about ways that these entities are collaborating to promote sustainable outcomes for water. Case studies about collaborative efforts on iconic water systems, including the Chesapeake Bay and the Mississippi River, as well as examples fostered by the federal government (the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency) were presented to provide examples of public-private partnerships that can serve as collaborative models and exemplars. The general tone of the discussion addressed challenges in policy and governance in sustaining our water resources and accounted for the role that communities and individual civic responsibility will play in the future. The Horinko Group convened this summit to further the conversation about ways to enhance the economic, environmental, and social sustainability of the nation's water resources, collaboratively.

Click here to download Summit Proceedings (PDF)

Summit Photos

Water Resource Pathfinders

As a highly committed champion for collaboration, The Horinko Group is currently partnering with a number of pathfinders to overcome challenges and seize opportunities. Our Water Division also provides staff resources to support a number of important pathfinding initiatives.

To nominate a pathfinder in your own community/region, please click here.

Collaborative Clients and Partners

The Northeast-Midwest Institute

Contact:
Mark Gorman
Policy Analyst
Northeast-Midwest Institute
mgorman@nemw.org

The Northeast-Midwest Institute is a Washington-based, private, non-profit, and non-partisan research organization dedicated to economic vitality, environmental quality, and regional equity for Northeast and Midwest states. Formed in the mid-1970's, it fulfills its mission by conducting research and analysis, developing and advancing innovative policy, providing evaluation of key federal programs, disseminating information, and highlighting sound economic and environmental technologies and practices.

The Institute is closely tied to legislative affairs through the Northeast-Midwest Congressional and Senate Coalitions, which work to advance federal policies that enhance the region's economy and environment. The Principals of The Horinko Group have longstanding collegial relationships with the executive leadership of the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center

Contact:
Dane Beiser
Grant Coordinator
National Great Rivers Research and Education Center
dvbeiser@lc.edu

The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) is a unique partnership of the University of Illinois, Lewis & Clark Community College, and the Illinois Natural History Survey. A major goal of this partnership is to provide research facilities for riverine science comparable to those provided by the Woods Hole and Scripps oceanographic institutes for marine science. The research and education programs at the center support NGRREC's mission of increasing our understanding of big rivers, their watersheds and floodplains, and the interaction between the rivers and their human, plant, and animal communities. The Center is strategically located near the confluence of three great rivers: the Mississippi, Missouri, and Illinois. The close proximity of three rivers of this magnitude is unique in the world and offers an ideal location for big river research.

With collaboration at the core of its values, the NGGREC has worked to establish partnerships with many different organizations. In addition to local and community interest groups like the Great Rivers Land Trust, the Center also partners with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Audubon, the Meeting of the Rivers Foundation, and Southern University at Baton Rouge on various projects and programs.

America's Waterway

Contact:
Anne H. Lewis
Founder
America's Waterway
alewis@americaswaterway.org

America's Waterway engages Mississippi River residents - experts, as well as people who just love the River - to form a constituency for the whole River and leverage that social capital on the River’s behalf. Their goal is to provide tools for civic engagement so stakeholders can create new approaches to the Mississippi’s environmental, cultural and development issues. Their premise is technology and a proven deliberative-democracy process. Residents from a variety of Mississippi River locations can be tapped on a scale large enough to address the whole Mississippi River as a system. And, from there, Mississippi River stakeholders can expand into a Mississippi River constituency that overcomes geographic and jurisdictional boundaries to support a civic agenda for America's Waterway.

While most River organizations start with an agenda and try to leverage support for it, America’s Waterway starts with a civic engagement process and the belief that Mississippi River residents are the platform for the process. That natural constituency - when equipped through a civic engagement process and armed as an online community - will develop the policy solutions that will work for the future of America’s Waterway. And, as a whole River constituency, they will have the political will and determination to advocate for solutions that address the River as a whole.

Lewis & Clark Community College

Contact:
Lori Artis
Associate Vice President
Media and Foundation Relations
lartis@lc.edu

Lewis & Clark is a two-year community college located in Godfrey, Illinois, approximately 30 miles north of St. Louis.  As a leading educational institution with an annual enrollment of more than 13,000 students, Lewis & Clark trains the region's workforce, giving employees the skills they need to remain competitive and be successful.

Taking advantage of its ideal location at the convergence of three major rivers - the Missouri, Mississippi, and Illinois - Lewis & Clark has joined forces with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the Illinois Natural History Survey to form the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center. As one of the only community colleges with a research mission, Lewis & Clark now stands on the forefront of environmental research, which means their students have access to unique internships and expanded course offerings.

The Wildlife Habitat Council

The Wildlife Habitat Council is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) group of corporations, conservation organizations, and individuals dedicated to restoring and enhancing wildlife habitat. Created in 1988, WHC helps large landowners, particularly corporations, manage their unused lands in an ecologically sensitive manner for the benefit of wildlife.

More than two million acres in 48 states, Puerto Rico, and 16 other countries are managed for wildlife through WHC-assisted projects. The Horinko Group is pursuing the opportunity to partner with the Wildlife Habitat Council to co-facilitate an industry group focused on redeveloping brownfields using new methods alternative energy and habitat restoration.

Contributed Staff Time and Technical Support

The National Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway

Contact:
Brett Stawar
Board Chairperson
Meeting of the Great Rivers National Scenic Byway
bstawar@visitalton.com

The Meeting of the Great Rivers National Scenic Byway features 33 miles of national significance where the Illinois, Missouri and Mississippi rivers converge.  Rich stories of historic, natural, scenic, cultural and archeological events and attractions blend seamlessly with abundant outdoor recreation opportunities through a mix of state, federal and local venues.  Thousands of visitors flock to the confluence of America's great rivers annually to enjoy the byway and its beauty during every season of the year.  The striking scenery complements hundreds of activities and festivals each year.  Visitors to the region even played a role in selecting the byway as one of the "Seven Wonders of Illinois" through a competitive campaign produced by the Illinois Bureau of Tourism.

This story does not happen by accident.  The byway communities of Hartford, Wood River, Alton, Godfrey, Elsah, and Grafton Illinois band together to form the official byway council that continue to evolve the movement that received national and state designation as a scenic byway.  Also with an official seat at the 11-member council, the byway involves Madison County, Jersey County and the Great Rivers Land Trust/Alton Lake Heritage Parkway Commission and Alton Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau.  As the byway progresses and the landscape changes, plans for the byway have changed as well.  The council worked with approximately 75 different federal, state and local organizations with vested interests in the byway and its purpose to update its Corridor Management Plan (PDF) in 2007.  Currently, the byway is going through an interpretive planning process with the goal to identify the byway visitor, solidify the overarching themes of the byway, outline the stories found along the byway, and enhance the visitor experience as they travel the route.

The byway and its partners will continue to organize and enhance the efforts to champion economic development, preservation and conservation as a roadmap for the future of this region.  Since its inception in 1997, the byway has been responsible for achieving approximately $4 million in local development and enhancements to visitor amenities along the route.  The remaining chapters of this byway movement are unwritten, but continue to unfold with its newest attraction opening this spring as the Lewis & Clark Confluence Tower in Hartford, Illinois.  The Tower will serve as a major gateway for travelers to learn more about the byway and experience breathtaking views of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers confluence.

The Audubon Center at Riverlands in St. Charles County, Mo

Contact:
Patricia Hagen, PhD
Executive Director
The Audubon Center at Riverlands
phagen@audubon.org

The Audubon Center at Riverlands in St. Louis will combine the strength of Audubon with the support of local partners to connect people with the power, beauty, and natural diversity of our nation's greatest river - the Mississippi.  The Center will be part of a unique network of Audubon Centers nationwide.  It will be located near the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, and the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers and will present education, outreach, and tourism programs focused on the great rivers.  Since the Mississippi River is one of the most important migratory flyways on earth, the Center's location at the great rivers' confluence will present ample and compelling opportunities to employ Audubon's century of experience in using birds to connect people to their natural heritage.

Hands-on, experiential learning will provide the framework for the Center's educational offerings. Some of the Center's offerings will include riverboat voyages, kayaking and canoeing experiences, a land- and water- based birding trail, and other riverside activities dedicated to conservation of the big rivers and their wildlife habitats. Connecting the people of the St. Louis region as well as regional visitors to their great rivers will also help to promote policy for a healthy Mississippi River - from headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico.

Audubon is proud to work with many agencies and governmental organizations in its efforts to establish the Audubon Center at Riverlands.  Audubon's primary partner in the development of The Audubon Center at Riverlands is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Audubon and the Corps entered into a national Memorandum of Agreement for their collaborative efforts to restore wildlife habitat, establish educational programs, and institute strategic planning to address conservation concerns.

The education and visitor orientation center being constructed by the Corps at Riverlands will be optimized by partnering in order to leverage resources, expertise, and heighten visitor's experiences.  Collaborative, pilot programming has already begun with the two partners, as well as with other regional partners.

To view an artist rendering of The Audubon Center at Riverlands - click here (PDF).

Some of Audubon's other regional partners include:

• Alton Convention and Visitors Bureau
• Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology
• Crossroads College Preparatory School
• Great Rivers Greenway District
• Metropolitan Sewer District
• Missouri Botanical Garden
• Missouri Department of Conservation
• Missouri Department of Natural Resources
• National Great Rivers Research and Education Center
• Sierra Club
• Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
• St. Louis Audubon Society
• Sustainable St. Louis
• Treehouse Wildlife Center
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Meeting of the Rivers Foundation

Contact:
mtrf@mtrf.org

The Meeting of the Rivers Foundation has been active for over a decade and six years have passed since the official opening of the National Great Rivers Museum. The museum is adjacent to the Melvin Price Locks and Dam in Alton, Illinois, and the Foundation shares the responsibility for public support of the Museum with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps is responsible for the day-to-day operation and management of the Museum, while the Foundation serves to provide high quality education and interpretive experiences that advance public awareness and understanding of great rivers issues, and thereby promote and inspire greater public and private stewardship and active involvement in the protection, preservation, and sustainable use of our river environments.

The last six years have been witness to steady growth in visitor traffic and significant progress in building awareness and understanding of the importance of our great rivers. We can all be proud of this facility, but especially of the many volunteers, partners, and local citizens who have labored so intensely over the years to realize the original dream of this fantastic community asset.

St. Louis Confluence Riverkeeper

Contact:
Mike Bush
St. Louis Confluence Riverkeeper
stlriverkeeper@sbcglobal.net

The St. Louis Confluence Riverkeeper (SLCR) was formed in June 2008. SLCR is part of the Waterkeeper Alliance, an association of more than 190 Waterkeepers worldwide. Located in the greater St. Louis, Missouri area where three great rivers come together - the Mississippi, Missouri, and Illinois Rivers - SLCR works to enhance the water quality of those important waterways. Testing area waters on a regular basis, providing educational information about the rivers, raising awareness of our water resources, and acting as a strong advocate for excellent water quality are day-to-day components of its mission.

A 12 person Board of Directors made up of members of environmental groups, local industry, the towing industry, water resource professionals, scientists, and other community leaders govern SLCR. Their goal is to be inclusive, collaborative, and results-focused. SLCR is proud to participate in various annual water-based outreach events that call out the multiple values and services that healthy rivers can provide. These include a migratory water birds event sponsored by the by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Audubon, a Water Festival for middle school children on the campus of a Lewis & Clark Community College, and a Towboat festival to raise awareness on our inner coastal maritime heritage.

While the challenges may seem large, the desire to improve the water quality at the confluence of these three great rivers and the collaborative spirit of SLCR is what keeps the group going.

Rivervision Leadership Project

The Rivervision Leadership Project, under the direction of Audubon Missouri and Dr. Patty Hagen, engages students throughout the Crossroads College Preparatory School student body in environmental leadership activities focused on the Mississippi River.  Students are exposed to a wide variety of water stewardship and water management issues associated with the River.  Students visit with environmental groups, the U.S. Corps of Engineers, the Metropolitan Sewer District, farm associations, the barge industry, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and others.  Students also use a successful conservation project regarding the federally endangered interior least tern as a metaphor for many complex river issues.  A culminating project associated with this effort is the students' work in recommending habitat preservation and restoration solutions for the interior least tern into the future - a complicated problem that will incorporate many river issues they will have discussed.

Water Salons

Too often, interested individuals gather to discuss a seemingly complex or intractable problem with some of the pieces missing: the unique subject matter experts, the focused agenda, the creative thinker, a sufficient amount of time, the incentives to take a perception of a situation to the point where action can be taken concertedly toward resolution, or at least sensible next steps toward an actionable outcome.

This comfortable setting infused with the right amount of preparatory work is necessary to ground an enriching and productive exchange. The Horinko Group will create this setting for success by hosting what we refer to as a Water Salon - a targeted group convened to examine the complexities of water in ways that foster the energy for practical problem solving and innovation. With subject matter experts lending their diverse perspectives, a facilitator to keep the group on target, the use of collaboration tools, and a summary of the proceedings to capture insights and new ideas, we will ensure this roundtable discussion drives towards solutions and approaches for an actionable path forward.

The Horinko Group's Water Division launches its series of Water Salons as a continuation of the dialogue initiated at the April 13 Summit, Sustaining Our Water Resources Through Collaboration. We will host a different group of water resources professionals each quarter to define a problem or opportunity meriting deeper thought, creative problem solving, and careful planning. These quarterly Water Salons will introduce a new idea or approach to addressing a range of pressing issues in need of further exploration. Our group will facilitate the discussion through a well-designed meeting process to produce a clear problem statement and path forward for addressing the specific water issue.

How a Water Salon Works

As host for the discussion, The Horinko Group will set the context for a lively discussion with a process deliberately designed for success that includes the following elements:

• Systems approach to problem solving

  Formulate a preliminary problem or opportunity statement within a systems context, identifying key elements, key stakeholders, and desired objectives. The output will be a proposed set of interdependent variables, how they relate, and key individuals who can shed light on the topic who should be invited to the Water Salon.

• Well-designed meeting agenda and process

  Clarify the objective(s) of the Water Salon, provide a flow of activities during the Salon, and enable the client and meeting planners to identify things that can go wrong and things that should go right so as to develop plans to ensure success and build contingencies against failure.

• Enable groups to discover visions through a shared vision of success

  Use of tools to build common understanding of a problem as a system of shared values and interdependent elements can promote deeper understanding of the real problem, potential solutions, and criteria for success.

• Convene a variety of sectors and groups to the table

  Multiple perspectives and new insights can be gained through a diverse group of stakeholders. Creative problem solving is enhanced when "outliers" enter the discussion with non-traditional questions and perspectives and when time is allocated for opportunities to challenge assumptions.

• Fosters insight by providing time for reflection

  The constant pressure to find solutions, accompanied by the busy schedules of executives and decision-makers, result in quick resolutions that do not always take into account all the underlying factors. Setting aside time to reflect can open thinking space and reveal new ideas and understandings.

• Document discussion highlights

  Summary of the salon discussion in terms of the iteration of problem statements, key ideas, points of agreement, potential solutions, and a proposed Action Plan. The proceedings will provide a vehicle for sharing discussion highlights and thinking with others to enhance solutions and approaches even more.

To Attend/Sponsor

If you or your organization would like to participate in a current salon we have scheduled, or if there is a topic of interest that you feel warrants a Water Salon focus, please contact Brendan McGinnis at bmcginnis@thehorinkogroup.org.

Sponsorship opportunities are available - read more (PDF).

2010 Water Salon Series - click here

2010 Water Salon Series

Past Water Salons

• Water Managers and Decision Makers: Searching for Synergy

  Special Guest: Dr. Gerald E. Galloway, retired U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Brigadier General
  Summary and Synthesis
  Water Salon Series Part I
  June 15, 2010
  Washington, DC

  The Horinko Group’s Water Division launched its Water Salon series on June 15, 2010 to provide a venue for reflective and non-attribution discussion among executives and engaged practitioners about critical water issues.

  Dr. Gerald E. Galloway, Glenn L. Martin Institute Professor of Engineers at the University of Maryland and a retired U.S. Army Corps of Engineers general presented the cross-cutting issue of the “Dilemma of the Water Box,” a concept he contributed to in “Getting Out of the Box – Linking Water Decisions for Sustainable Development,” from the United Nations document, Water in a Changing World. This dilemma describes water professionals as often times being “inside the box,” disconnected from decision-makers who are outside the box and yet who make or influence decisions regarding the allocation of human and financial resources necessary to meet water challenges.

  Click here to download June 15, 2010 Water Salon Summary (PDF)

  Click here to download Dr. Galloway’s PowerPoint Presentation (PDF)

Upcoming Water Salons

• Addressing Water Issues and Finding Common Direction through a Social Capital Framework

  Special Guest: Dr. Stephen P. Gasteyer, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Michigan State University
  August 2010
  Washington, DC

  The Horinko Group's Water Division presents the second installment in the 2010 Water Salon Series with an exploration of a new model for assessing system water issues through a "social capital" framework. Dr. Stephen P. Gasteyer, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Michigan State University offers a framework for sustainable and secure water resources management. In his article entitled "Building Bridges: Community-based Social Networks for Sustainable and Secure Water Management" (published in the Water Resources Update by the Universities Council on Water Resources, Issue 127, February 24, 2004, pp. 31-40), Dr. Gasteyer touches on the power of social networking and the value of two variables in a systems model - Human Capital and Social Capital - in addition to Natural Capital and Financial/Built Capital.

  The Horinko Group will consider how this model can be applied to analyze water problems and needs and guide efforts for civic engagement and improving popular water resource awareness. How social capital can be used to raise awareness and advocacy for water resources issues and problem-solving approaches, as well as the resources available to do so will be addressed.

• Securing a Future for our Aquatic Ecosystems: Investing in Natural Capital to foster Livable Communities

  Special Guests: Dr. Dale Chapman, Founding Member of the Illinois Community College Sustainability Network;
  Dr. Richard Warner, Director, Office of Sustainability, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  October 2010
  Hosted at The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center Field Station
  Alton, IL

  Our Nation's water systems - the Chesapeake Bay, Great Lakes, Everglades, Mississippi River, Gulf region, Columbia River - provide the perfect context for examining how bayside, lakeside, riverside, and gulfside communities work effectively toward sustainable water outcomes. A number of efforts are underway to protect and restore these vast and critical ecosystems. Federal partners are joining with regional, state, and local pathfinders to address storm detection, catchment plans, low-impact development, and protection of open space. Major local investments are being made to reconnect waterside "gateway" communities to their water heritage in order to improve their water position, bolster their quality of life, and diversify their economies for a more sustainable water future.

  Community Colleges are deeply rooted in the community and are trusted local institutions. Major Land Grant Universities like the University of Illinois can bring the power of the University's Research Program to bear on the livability of watershed communities and help local leaders discover a sustainable path forward.

  These systems and opportunities are ripe for a Water Salon to stimulate and focus action to create new pathways forward.

To Attend/Sponsor

If you or your organization would like to participate in a current salon we have scheduled, or if there is a topic of interest that you feel warrants a Water Salon focus, please contact Brendan McGinnis at bmcginnis@thehorinkogroup.org.

Sponsorship opportunities are available - read more (PDF).

Water Client Services

The need and value for collaboration has never been more acutely evident than with water and our stewardship of our nation's water resources. Our extended team of water resource professionals understand the value of relationships and the importance of effective collaboration in making real progress in tackling tough water challenges and seizing unique water opportunities.

We bring together practitioners with years of collaborative experience to help our clients and partners achieve success. We are committed to being at the forefront of making partnerships work and securing our water future. A few of the value added services we provide:

• Assist community leaders and local institutions to have a voice and place at the table in regional water conversations.
• Build important brand awareness for those institutions adding value and capacity to the effort to tackle key water issues and challenges.
• Assist collaborative groups and communities of practice overcome institutional barriers.
• Support worthwhile collaborative efforts achieve scalable momentum to add true value to the watersheds they are working in.
• Connect the dots by locating and matching water partners with shared values for leveraged and marketable success.
• Assist water clients to recognize trends and change drivers that are reshaping our relationship with water and each other.
• Ongoing cooperation with federal and state program managers to raise stakeholder awareness of programs that are providing incentives for sustainable practices.
• Serve as a convener and translator to help organizational cultures overcome cultural differences to foster a shared sense of purpose and a common language of cooperation.

The Horinko Group Water Team is dedicated to bringing the water conversation to the national mainstream and encouraging civic engagement to foster participation and inclusion in all things water. We want you to succeed with measureable and replicable results.

What's New

Events

65th International Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Conference
June 18 - 21, 2010
St. Louis, MO

ACE10 - AWWA's Annual Conference and Exhibition
June 20 - 24, 2010
Chicago, IL

2010 Ecosystem Services Conference
June 24-25, 2010
Silver Spring, MD

Getting in Step – A Guide for Conducting Watershed Outreach Campaigns
July 29, 2010
Godfrey, IL

Watershed Management 2010
August 23 -27, 2010
Madison, WI

National Waterways Conference - 50th Anniversary, Annual Meeting
September 22 - 24, 2010
Boston, MA

2010 AWRA Annual Water Resources Conference
November 1 - 4, 2010
Philadelphia, PA

International Conference on Integrated Water Management
February 2 - 5, 2011
Murdoch University, Perth, WA

Resources

Of Maps and Men: 17th Century Mapmaking and 21st Century Sustainability

June 23, 2010
Source: America's Inner Coast Summit
Authored by: Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst, Northeast-Midwest Institute

The Horinko Group Hosts Reflective Discussion with National Water Leaders on Shaping a Brighter Water Outlook

May 2010
Authored by: Dr. Donna Ayres, Senior Consultant, The Horinko Group

April 13, 2010 Summit Keynote Remarks (PDF)

Provided by G. Tracy Mehan, The Cadmus Group

Making the Popular Case for Water Resource Sustainability - The Role of Storytelling and Social Networkers

April 2010
Co-Authored By: Brendan P. McGinnis and Patrick S. McGinnis, The Horinko Group's Water Division

Arriving at a National Water Strategy - The Role of Pathfinders in Water Resource Collaboration

March 2010
Authored by: Patrick S. McGinnis, Water Resources Team Leader, The Horinko Group

Dedication of Heron Pond Shorebird Habitat Enhancement Project (PDF)

Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary
October 25, 2009
St. Charles, MO
Opening remarks provided by Patrick McGinnis, The Horinko Group

The Watershed Approach and Strategies for Implementation (PDF)
Clean Rivers, Clean Lake VI - Watershed Planning Conference
August 31, 2009
Milwaukee, WI

Featured Pathfinder

Currently accepting nominations.

For additional information on the pathfinder concept - click here.

Archive

Events

• Coming Together for Clean Water
  April 15, 2010
  Washington, DC

• 5th Annual Wings of Spring Confluence Birding Festival
  May 8, 2010
  Alton, IL

• ASFPM Annual Conference - Building Blocks of Floodplain Management
  May 16 - 21, 2010
  Oklahoma City, OK

• The Green Building, Blue Water 26th Annual Resource Management Conference (PDF)
  May 25-26, 2010
  Tulsa, OK

Library

• Devolution: Government and Other Factors in 2050 (PDF)
  2007 Assembly of the Gilbert F. White National Flood Policy Forum
  Marvin Center, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
  Remarks provided by G. Tracy Mehan, III, The Cadmus Group

We Value Your Input

If there is a timely event, publication, or related water resource that you would like us to consider posting, please click the appropriate form link below:

• Share an Event
• Share a Resource
• Nominate a Pathfinder