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# Section Who We Are
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The Athabasca Watershed Council (AWC) is a registered charity and not-for-profit organization formed in August, 2009. We work with academia, industry, environmental and stewardship groups, various levels of government, communities, citizens, and Indigenous peoples to provide timely and credible information about the Athabasca River watershed.
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Our Vision
The Athabasca watershed is ecologically healthy, supporting resilient communities and a sustainable economy.
Our Mission
To demonstrate leadership and facilitate informed decision-making in the Athabasca watershed by bringing stakeholders and Indigenous peoples together to achieve our shared vision.
Our Logo
The Athabasca Watershed Council logo was created and donated to the Council by Nona Foster, in February 2010. Nona described her work as follows:
“The Athabasca River, as a major River system, starts in the mountains, at Jasper (my native ancestors lived there). The River is influenced by different terrain, forests, prairie, low lands, running north to Athabasca lake in northern Alberta. It was used as a trade route and by the Native people. I hoped to express this with the drop of water, mountains, forest, river and feathers. Athabasca is an anglicized Cree word meaning ‘grass or reeds here and there’.”
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Our Values
- We value integrity, trust, and transparency.
- We respect all points of view.
- Water is a blessing and gift and is essential for environment, society, economy and the spirit.
- Respect the environment and people.
- We believe in consensus decision making.
- We respect economic necessities.
- We value a high standard of achievement and conduct in the WPAC.
- We value ecological health as foundational to all life.
- We value timely responses to issues.
- We value and respect the Indigenous peoples, culture, and knowledge in the Athabasca Watershed.
- We value inclusivity.
- We value creativity, innovation, and risk taking.
- We are responsible and accountable to all members.
- We are purpose driven.
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_Title_: Board of Directors
_Secondary_title_: Coming to Consensus
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_Title_: Committees
_Secondary_title_: Executive, Technical, CE&CE, and F&F Committees
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# Section Water For Life
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The AWC is one of eleven designated Watershed Planning and Advisory Councils (WPACs) working in partnership with the Government of Alberta towards achieving the goals of the Water for Life strategy:
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_Description_: Safe, secure drinking water
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_Description_: Healthy aquatic ecosystems
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_Description_: Reliable, quality water supplies for a sustainable economy
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_Title_: Support Our Work
_Secondary_title_: Help us report, plan, facilitate, educate and collaborate.
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We are working towards achieving these goals through:
- Identification of environmental issues in the watershed (water, air, land, and biodiversity). This a process that involves compilation, analysis, and interpretation of scientific and technical information and their presentation in the form of a report, Athabasca State of the Watershed Report (SoW Report). To date, we have completed four phases.
- Development of a set of recommendations, suggesting solutions to the issues identified in the various phases of the SoW Report. Cognizant of adaptive management, emerging issues beyond the SoW Report will also be considered. This work will form the Athabasca Integrated Watershed Management Plan (IWMP). The IWMP will be presented to all sectors, communities, and citizens who have interest and commitment to the ecological health and sustainability of the the Athabasca watershed, for their voluntary implementation of recommendations.
- Fostering watershed stewardship, providing education and awareness about water and watershed resources, and promoting Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs). In order to achieve these objectives we hold public participation events, participate in community events, partner with different sectors, groups and communities on collaborative projects; arrange tours to sites of successful BMPs implementation, and publish supporting information materials.
