Meraux Foundation Positioning St. Bernard as Leader in River Delta Education

Delegation of La. educators returns from Rivers Institute in Minnesota A delegation of educators and environmentalists headed by the Arlene and Joseph Meraux Charitable Foundation returned to St. Bernard Parish yesterday after attending the Waters to the Sea Rivers Institute at the source of the Mississippi River in Minnesota. The group was there to experience the renowned professional development program for educators, which will serve as a model for an annual Deltas Institute in St. Bernard Parish beginning in 2015. Waters to the Sea is a series of internationally-acclaimed learning programs on North America’s waterways for grades kindergarden through twelve. They are produced by the Center for Global Environmental Education at Hamline University in Minnesota. Working with local partners, the Meraux Foundation plans to add Louisiana to Water to the Sea’s list of regional versions, which includes Alabama, California, Georgia, Minnesota, and Texas. “I am thrilled to announce plans for the Deltas Institute. When I first attended the Waters to the Sea Rivers Institute last year, I was amazed and inspired,” said Meraux Foundation board member Chris Haines. “Last week’s trip was about bringing a group of educators to experience the Rivers Institute first-hand so that we can work together to develop a similar program in St. Bernard Parish.” The Delta Institute will gather teachers from across the country annually for professional development and help elevate St. Bernard’s position as a center for education on river deltas. “Living on the delta, we are confronted with issues of flood protection, river diversions, a dead zone, subsidence, erosion, maritime commerce, fisheries, energy production, and much more. Each of these offer educational opportunities for students to learn about everything from science and math to civics and economics,” said Bill Haines, a Meraux Foundation board member who also attended the Rivers Institute in Minnesota.” The Meraux Foundation will be recruiting partners from across Louisiana to pool resources and enrich the professional development program. “I fell in love with the Rivers Institute when I first attended in 2011, and I’m thrilled to be working with the Meraux Foundation and Hamline University to develop a program for St. Bernard Parish,” said Dinah Maygarden, Director of the University of New Orleans’ Coastal Education Program. “A lot of great work is being done in Louisiana dealing with water issues, and instead of duplicating efforts, the program will be leveraging them to extend their reach and impact.” Waters to the Sea has engaged with more than 100 partner organizations across the U.S. to create and implement award-winning educational initiatives on topics related to water and natural resource stewardship. “Southeast Louisiana’s connection with Minnesota is clear, we’re at the beginning, the headwaters of the Mississippi River; and St. Bernard is at the end, the delta,” said Tracy Fredin, the director of the Center for Global and Environmental Education. “What happens here in Minnesota effects the people at the delta, including the residents of St. Bernard, that’s why we’re so please to form this strategic partnership with the Meraux Foundation.” The Foundation anticipates that, like other Rivers Institutes, the Deltas Institute will attract teachers from around the world to St. Bernard Parish. Those visitors will contribute to the local economy, utilizing hotels, tours, restaurants, and other amenities and services. “The Deltas Institute has potential implications far beyond the professional development opportunities for our teachers,” said Haines. “Its ripple effect could be far and wide, reaching existing businesses in the Parish like hotels and restaurants and helping to grow our ecotourism economy.”