Our Blue River is a beautiful and important regional asset with great potential, but that potential is wasted every day. We aim to change that! This year, partners are joining RENEW THE BLUE to help people understand how amazing the river is to our community and ways they can connect to their urban waters. What is RENEW THE BLUE? Local conservation partners created a unified message campaign to help partners connect, to help the public become more aware, and to build general support to realize all of the benefits offered by the Blue River. With support from the Middle Blue River Urban Waters Partnership, Mid-America Regional Council created Renew the Blue, a creative brand for the river. They also created a map highlighting ways to connect to the river. Last April, partners launched a RENEW THE BLUE campaign at the celebration of the completion of the Blue River channel project. Following that in September, the YMCA and Heartland Conservation Alliance hosted a Let’s Move Outside Summit to make plans to keep the RENEW THE BLUE momentum alive. Campaign partners work together to increase understanding, use and stewardship of the Blue River by bringing more attention to the many community organizations and government agencies that have invested in flood control, urban agriculture, river cleanup events, park and trail development, and brownfields restoration efforts. Partners’ shared objectives include improving water quality; protecting and restoring forests, wetlands and wildlife habitat; improving access to the river and promoting positive outdoor experiences; sharing the river’s history; quantifying its ecosystem value; and promoting sustainable economic development. RENEW THE BLUE partners are signing up now to be a part of this exciting campaign and to work together, including Monarchs on the Move, Little Blue River Watershed Coalition, Blue River Watershed Association and Mid-America Regional Council! To learn more or to join the campaign, contact Joy Heaviland, HCA Partnership Coordinator, at hcapartnerships@gmail.com or by phone at 816-759-7309 ext. 1148.
