ONLINE: Clean Lakes 101

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Bob Koch

Lake Mentota from the shoreline near Governor's Island, December 2020.

Our lakes are a big part of what makes our area special, winter and summer. The Clean Lakes Community Awards, a recognition of outstanding accomplishments of individuals and businesses working to protect the Yahara chain of lakes, will be held online this year via Zoom. Awards include New Lake Partner of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Lake Leadership, Project of the Year and the Founders Award and it's a great chance for residents to learn more about the issues that affect our lakes and who's working to make change. A link to access the talk will be sent to all registered attendees ahead of the event, which is part of the monthly lecture series (formerly known as Yahara Lakes 101) from the Clean Lakes Alliance. Find tickets ($5) here.

press release: Clean Lakes 101: Awards, Accomplishments, & Ambitions

This special event will feature a presentation from Clean Lakes Alliance staff and recognize our 2021 Clean Lakes Community Award winners! The Clean Lakes Community Awards recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of individuals and businesses working to protect our Yahara lakes. The awards honor the dedication of individuals and organizations making a difference in our watershed. Join us for the awards presentation and a chance to reflect on our 2020 lake accomplishments.

Award Categories

• New Lake Partner of the Year (business/organization): A new Lake Partner for Clean Lakes Alliance showing a level of commitment that goes beyond a first-time financial contribution.
• Volunteer of the Year (individual/group): A dedicated individual or group of volunteers working to restore and preserve our Yahara lakes.
• Lake Leadership (individual/group): An individual or business, government entity, or organization leading by example and demonstrating their commitment to being a catalyst for healthy lakes.
• Project of the Year (individual/group): An initiative or project that improves the health of the Yahara Watershed
• Founders Award (individual/business/organization): A devoted individual, business, or organization that has provided foundational support to Clean Lakes Alliance and our Yahara lakes.

2019 Award Winners

• New Lake Partner of the Year Award – Patrick Ellestad of Edward Jones
• Individual Lake Leadership Award – Jackie Hering of the Big Swell Swim series
• Business Lake Leadership Award – Highland Spring Farm
• Volunteer of the Year Award – MSCR Pontoon Program
• Founders Award – Greg Dombrowski
• Urban Project of the Year – Trash Talkers
• Rural Project of the Year – Yahara Pride Farms’ manure composting program
• Lake Champion – Joanna Burish
• Read more about our 2019 award recipients.

This event will be held online via Zoom. The online talk is free and open to the public. A link to access the talk LIVE will be sent to all registered attendees ahead of the event.

Clean Lakes 101 (formerly Yahara Lakes 101) is a series of educational events open to the public and a great chance for residents to learn more about the science behind the issues that affect our lakes. Each month we feature a different expert to make the science accessible and interesting to non-technical audiences.

You may have noticed a name change to our event. Clean Lakes 101 Science Café, formerly called Yahara Lakes 101 Science Café, is the same great event but will use an updated name. 

Our newly-titled Clean Lakes 101 Science Café is now reaching a broader audience thanks to a partnership with UW Extension Lakes and our new virtual format. While our focus will still be on the Yahara lakes, we will continue featuring many topics relevant to lakes and water quality challenges that extend well beyond our local watershed boundaries.