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THE ADVANTAGES OF

PARTNERSHIPS:STORMWATER EDUCATION

CONSORTIA IN SOUTH CAROLINA

David F. Joyner

Natural Resources Agent

Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service

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Partnerships

A relationship between individualsor groups that is characterized by

mutual cooperation andresponsibility, as for the achievement

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PartnershipsWHY?

1) COMPLEXITY:

Environmental issues, such as

water quality and stormwatereducation, are often too large andcomplex for one organization to

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PartnershipsWHY?

2) REDUNDANCY:

Many organizations are alreadyworking in a particular area of theproblem; there is existinginfrastructure, curriculum, and

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PartnershipsWHY?

3) RESOURCES:

Organizations bring variousresources (human, financial,physical) and expertise to the

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PartnershipsWHY?

4) SYNERGY:

Working in partnerships createssynergy and an improved publicperception of the issue, such as

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PartnershipsWHY?

5) CREDIBILITY:

Credibility is enhanced throughpartnerships because it indicatesunity of purpose and importance of

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PartnershipsWHY?

6) COMMUNICATION:

Partnerships improvecommunication, often betweenformerly more independent

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PartnershipsWHY?

7) CREATIVITY:

New and creative ideas aboundwhen working together as a group.

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PartnershipsWHY?

8) SCALE:

The size and scale of awatershed-level education strategyrequires a coordinated effort.

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PartnershipsWHO?

Stormwater Education Consortia

Two Primary Groups: Phase II MS4 Communities Education Providers--Including

Universities, State Agencies, Non-

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PartnershipsWHO?

UNIVERSITIES/ACADEMIAPartner Strengths:

Technical Expertise Research Driven

Extension Programs (Land and SeaGrant) Homeowner, Farmer, Technical

Audiences Public Service Mission Mass Media (radio, tv,

newspapers)

Examples: Clemson University

Extension and Carolina ClearProgram

Coastal Carolina University

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PartnershipsWHO?

FED, STATE, LOCALAGENCIES

Partner Strengths: Environmental Expertise Focused and Aligned Missions

Regional or State-Wide Area

Existing Education Programs

Examples:

SC Sea Grant and SCSGExtension

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PartnershipsWHO?

NON PROFITS

Partner Strengths: Focused Target Audiences

Aligned Mission

Established EducationCurriculum

Experience

Examples: Waccamaw Riverkeeper

Lowcountry Earth Force

Michaux Conservancy

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PartnershipsHOW?

IMPLEMENTATION: Case Studies ofStormwater Education Consortia in

South Carolina Coastal Waccamaw Stormwater

Education Consortium

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PartnershipsHOW?

CWSEC: History and Background 2004 Education Providers met to discuss activities

and the need for a regional collaboration ofstormwater education efforts. Cal Sawyer of Clemson University's Carolina Clear

Program Susan Libes of Coastal Carolina University's Waccamaw

Watershed Academy Jeff Pollack of the North Inlet Winyah Bay CoastalTraining Program

Hamp Shuping of the Waccamaw Riverkeeper Program

They joined with local MS4 communities to form the

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PartnershipsHOW?

Education Consortia Structure: Both Formal and Informal

Formal arrangements with communities to

implement regional education strategy Each county/municipality signed a non-

binding resolution to develop regionaleducation strategy and form a stormwatereducation consortium

Joint resolution press conferences

Formal and Informal Structure with

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PartnershipsHOW?

Each Consortium hasdeveloped an educationplan that provides an

outline of proposed events Consortium members both

work individually and

collaboratively on specificprojects

Target Audience, Pollutant,and Geography components

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Partnerships

Poor Communication andInvolvement

Political Wrangling and ChangingRegulations

Lack of Well-Developed/Realistic Plan

Time and Budget Constraints

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PartnershipsSUMMARY

Partnerships can be very effective formultiple reasons: Education of diverse audiences over a large

geographic area requires collaborative efforts Multiple groups working together can achieve

more than working separately

Sharing resources and expertise to arrive at amutual goal

Avoid the pitfalls Develo a com rehensive lan