52 | How Can Hosting an Exhibit Spark Lasting Change?

The Watershed is a podcast of We Are Water MN. In this special episode, we hear from Brittany Lenzmeier and Stephanie Hatzenbihler of Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District. Brittany and Stephanie share about their experiences hosting We Are Water MN.

This episode explores:

· Interviewee paths to working in water resources

· What drew our interviewees to We Are Water MN

· Lessons learned while hosting We Are Water MN

· Advice for prospective and future host sites

· Outcomes from hosting We Are Water MN

· Forming lasting partnerships

· Beyond hosting We Are Water MN - what did hosting make possible? What hopes remain?

Are you interested in bringing We Are Water MN to your community? The deadline for host site applications is July 21, 2024. Learn more and apply at https://www.mnhum.org/get-involved/host-an-exhibit/host-we-are-water-mn/.

We Are Water MN is a community engagement initiative and traveling exhibit that builds relationships with and responsibilities to water.

This episode of the Watershed was produced by Angela Hugunin, and by We Are Water MN, which is led by the Minnesota Humanities Center in partnership with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency; the Minnesota Historical Society; the Board of Water and Soil Resources; the Minnesota Departments of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources; and University of Minnesota Extension.

We are Water MN is funded in part with money from the Clean Water, Land, & Legacy Fund that was created with the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008, and by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Special thanks to Brittany Lenzmeier and Stephanie Hatzenbihler of Stearns County SWCD for their time willingness to share. https://www.stearnscountyswcd.net/wawmn

 

The We Are Water MN exhibit will be hosted in Chisago County from June 20 through August 12, 2024. The main exhibit will be at the North Branch Area Library, with additional indoor exhibits on view at the Chisago County History Center. Lindstrom Memorial Park will have an outdoor display. After Chisago County, the exhibit will move to Cass Lake (Leech Lake Tribal College), and Shakopee (Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community).

You can learn more about We Are Water MN at www.mnhum.org/water. Learn more about Chisago County’s hosting of the exhibit, plus related events, at https://www.chisagocountymn.gov/1349/We-Are-Water-MN-Exhibit---June-20-to-Aug.

You can find We Are Water MN on Facebook (⁠https://www.facebook.com/wearewatermn/⁠), Instagram (⁠https://www.instagram.com/wearewatermn/⁠), and Twitter (⁠https://twitter.com/wearewatermn⁠). Follow along for the latest updates!

Music credits: These Times and Paper Feather by Blue Dot Sessions (⁠www.sessions.blue⁠).