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A note from our new Executive Director, Rob Cadmus:
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It’s an exciting time of year in Southeast Alaska. The seasons are changing from spring to summer. The mountain tops are greening, fish and wildlife are becoming more prevalent, and long days are getting even longer. It’s also an exciting time for the Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition and our member groups.
In a time when divided politics and controversy seems the norm, I’m pleased to have recently taken over as Executive Director of SAWC, an organization with an amazing ability to transcend politics through working with a broad spectrum of people towards practical solutions for communities and the environment. Having made Southeast Alaska my home since 2006, I am also excited about SAWC’s place based approach. SAWC’s key strength is its ability to connect people to the land and water they call home. SAWC’s strong network of member groups and partnerships with tribal organizations and community groups is a testament to this approach, and I intend to help strengthen SAWC’s ties to the land and people of Southeast.
Until recently, I was working with the Secretariat for the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, an international treaty organization, to demonstrate how the restoration of wetlands and waterbodies can provide important services to people. I’m thrilled to help bring some of these broad principles to the local level; our region’s streams and wetlands provide invaluable services to Southeast Alaskans, providing us with fish, clean water, and supporting our tourism industries. I have also worked for several non-profit NGOs in Alaska, and I hope to use these experiences to help maintain and strengthen SAWC’s operations and business.
I hope the work summarized in our summer newsletter is as exciting to you as it is to me, and I hope it encourages you to engage in the important work of the Coalition and our partners.
Cheers,
Rob Cadmus, SAWC Executive Director
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Through our Community Food Sustainability Program, SAWC fosters watershed stewardship by strengthening the connection between our land and water, the foods we eat, and the cultural and economic significance of these resources.
SAWC staff and partners across the region are working together to develop community foods projects that support local economies, foster sustainable resource management, provide access to nutritious local foods, and support vibrant cultural and community traditions.
We’re excited to join the Sustainable Southeast Partnership to host the work of Food Sustainability Regional Catalyst, Lia Heifetz, who oversees the Community Food Sustainability Program with SAWC.
We’re also excited to welcome Colin Peacock to the SAWC team, who coordinates our latest Community Foods project, the Salt & Soil Marketplace!
Learn more about our program goals and current projects here
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Lia Heifetz, Food Sustainability Regional Catalyst & Community Foods Sustainability Program Director
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Field Notes
Updates from our work on the ground:
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Salt & Soil Marketplace is Live!
Salt & Soil Marketplace connects Southeast Alaska food consumers with growers, fishermen, foragers, and gardeners through a community marketplace that merges the best of online and real-time shopping.
The Marketplace helps support local economies, keeps food dollars within our region and provides high quality local foods to our neighbors, helping Southeast Alaska be more sustainable, resilient, and prosperous.
Salt & Soil Marketplace is now serving Juneau and Haines with weekly pickups of locally produced foods!
Learn more about Salt & Soil Marketplace, and shop participating local vendors
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Climate Adaptation Workshop Brings Together Tribes & Communities to Monitor Changes in Fish Habitat
In an effort to better understand and respond to the effects of climate change on stream and river systems, some Southeast Alaska communities and management agencies have begun monitoring temperatures of their local aquatic systems.
Earlier this month SAWC and the Chilkat Indian Village partnered to hold a climate change adaptation and monitoring training in Klukwan, where participants came together to learn methods and protocols for monitoring the effects of climate change on aquatic resources.
Learn more about stream temperature monitoring in SE Alaska
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Nancy Street Wetland; Photo courtesy of
Michele Elfers, City & Borough of Juneau Engineering Department
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Juneau Water Quality Monitoring Tracks Success of Wetlands Restoration
The Juneau Watershed Partnership has partnered with the State of Alaska DEC and the University of Alaska Southeast to collect water quality data on Juneau’s Duck Creek watershed. This data will be used to determine the effectiveness of the Nancy Street Wetland - a constructed wetland created with the goal of improving water quality on the impaired stream. Samples will be collected and tested throughout the summer for a range of water quality parameters.
Learn more about this project
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Hooligan Study Aims to Understand Population Trends & Adaptation to Climate Change
Takshanuk Watershed Council has begun their seventh year monitoring hooligan (Eulachon or Saak) populations in Northern Lynn Canal, in partnership with the Chilkoot Indian Association and Oregon State University.
Takshanuk and project partners hope to gain a better understanding of the important subsistence species’ population trends and adaptations to climate change by examining the population at a larger regional scale.
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US Forest Service - Tongass National Forest | Deadline: June 30
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Conservation Biology Institue
June 13, 9:oo am - 10:00 am AKST
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