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The Biodiversity Project is currently coordinating and facilitating the efforts of the Mississippi River Network: Headwaters to Gulf. In collaboration with the Network, and with funding from the McKnight Foundation, we are developing a coordinated communications campaign in the ten Mississippi River valley states. The overarching goal of the campaign is to inspire policy-makers, the agricultural community, and engaged citizens to take action to restore and protect the Mississippi River and the Gulf.
The Mississippi River Network, which is comprised of 35 member organizations, hired the Biodiversity Project in 2007 to manage public opinion research on the Mississippi River. The Biodiversity Project worked closely with the public opinion firms: Fairbanks, Mauslin, Mallin & Associates and Public Opinion Strategies to plan focus groups and design a regional survey to assess public perceptions and attitudes regarding the Mississippi River.
In the fall of 2007 the Biodiversity Project coordinated a two-day meeting with the Network's member organizations to disseminate the results from this research and discuss how this research could be incorporated in the Network's communications efforts. Following that meeting the Biodiversity Project worked closely with Network members to develop a communications strategy based on the public opinion research and the restoration goals identified by the Network.
In the spring of 2008 the Biodiversity Project took up the reigns as the Network's coordinator, and in June of 2008, we began organizing the Network's regional campaign.
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