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FMR Executive Director Whitney Clark named transformational leader

Whitney Clark

FMR is proud to announce that our very own executive director, Whitney Clark, won the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits' 2017 Transformational Leader Award. 

Whitney has often expressed that he strongly relates to E.B. White’s comment, “I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world.” But to his friends and colleagues, these appear to be one and the same. 

Our metro Mississippi River and its communities would not be what they are today without your leadership. Congrats, Whitney! 

By Sara DeKok
June 2017

The river belongs to all of us. FMR's 2016 annual report.

Friends of the Mississippi River annual report

We're proud to announce FMR's 2016 Annual Report, "The river belongs to all of us."

On the heels of an especially trying legislative session, we hope you enjoy reading about our many shared advocacy, conservation and stewardship victories over the past year. From new state rules to protect our riverfront to new programs that address today's biggest source of river pollution (farm runoff), to new parks and greater understanding of the need for all communities to be able to access them, there is much to celebrate.

June 2017

How water fared in the legislative session + a happy hour invitation

While the 2017 Minnesota legislative session didn’t go as well as we hoped — we failed to make any meaningful progress on water quality — we can say for certain that the final bills were a great improvement over those originally vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton. 

Thank you FMR River Guardians, Water Action Day participants and everyone who joined in our efforts to stand up for clean water this session! 

Learn more from our Legislative Updates blog and join us for happy hour, Tuesday, June 27 to recap the session with the FMR Capitol Crew and discuss what's next.

By Trevor Russell
June 2017

Environment bill becomes law: What’s in & what’s out?

The Minnesota Legislature's original environment bill was one of the most sweeping anti-environmental bills to advance at the Capitol in many years. Luckily, it was vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton on May 12. So what made it into the final bill that the governor signed on May 30? Some rollbacks, no water quality progress, but not the worst provisions were removed during final negotiations with the Dayton administration.

By Trevor Russell
June 2017

Sigh... Environment bill signed. Legacy funds shifted.

We're pretty sure that when Minnesotans passed the Legacy Amendment, this isn't what they — what we — had in mind. Just signed by Gov. Mark Dayton, the environment bill shifts voter-mandated conservation funds to administrative costs. Thank you to all the River Guardians who tried to prevent this, we look forward to inviting you to happy hour soon to recap the session.

By Trevor Russell
June 2017

Whose view? From where? — May 2017

We received several correct responses to last month's photo, taken from the banks of one of Minnesota's nicest small towns on the river.

By Irene Jones
May 2017

Gov. Dayton vetoes awful environmental bill! (But another is on the way.)

Friday, May 12, Gov. Mark Dayton vetoed a historically bad omnibus environment bill. It sought to give polluters the right to write their own environmental impact statements, slashed funding for environmental agencies and even prevented cities from banning plastic bags. In short, it threatened to undermine Minnesota’s long tradition of protecting the water we drink and the air we breathe. 

By Trevor Russell
May 2017

Why are MN's largest companies leading the charge to roll back our environmental protections?

Tell Minnesota companies to #KeepMNClean and #ProtectOurWater.

Tell Minnesota companies to #KeepMNClean and #ProtectOurWater.

The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce has led many of this legislative session's attacks on our environment. Do the heads of Target, Best Buy, 3M, Medtronic, U.S. Bank, General Mills, Ecolab, Xcel Energy, Hormel and Delta Air Lines know what's being done in their name? 

May 2017

Unassuming little beetle's clever (gross?) 'shield defense'

sumac flea beetle

The adults of the sumac flea beetle emerge in spring to feed on young sumac leaves.

Found on sumac, these beetles have an especially interesting way of protecting their young.

By Tom Lewanski
May 2017

Building on a successful Water Action Day

More than 1,000 Minnesotans joined us at the Capitol to urge legislators and Gov. Mark Dayton to invest in clean water and protect Minnesota's great outdoors. Now we're keeping up the momentum with the River Guardians and Water Action Daily. 

By Trevor Russell
May 2017

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