Great River Greening’s project goals are to improve the region’s natural resources by improving ecological systems and promoting stewardship and management of critical lands and waters. Within this goal, we choose our projects according to very specific criteria: conservation need; ecosystem services provided, likelihood of project success, and community benefits.
 
Currently we have several programs going on:

• Forests and Freshwaters Campaign: Approximately 40% of assessed water bodies have been listed as impaired. While the issue of water quality is complex and requires multiple organizations and strategies, we as a community of volunteers can do many things in the next five years. Through the Campaign for Forests and Freshwater, we all have an opportunity to put Minnesota on the path to clean water. We each can make a difference to ensure that our precious water resources will be here for generations to come.

• Anoka Sandplain Partnership: Great River Greening is leading a partnership of 20 conservation stakeholders to advance terrestrial and freshwater resource conservation in this ecological region.  The Anoka Sandplain serves as a critical filter for the aquifer that provides the Twin Cities and east-central Minnesota with most of its drinking water. It is also a rich collection of natural resources, including two state Wild and Scenic Rivers and numerous wildlife management areas.
  
• Healthy Waters St. Croix: Developed by Great River Greening to improve water quality in the St. Croix River by restoring upland plant communities and establishing best management practices and funded by a multi-year Bush Foundation grant, the St. Croix Initiative is a collaboration with Washington County Conservation District and Chisago Soil and Water Conservation District.
  
  
• Sustainable Landscape for Affordable Housing: Great River Greening is improving water quality with native plantings and other best management practices in public, private, urban, and suburban landscapes. Our partnership with the Home Depot Foundation to develop sustainable landscapes in selected affordable housing developments is an example.
  
  
• Stewardship for the Future: To ensure that Greening’s restoration projects thrive over generations through maintenance, monitoring, training and outreach we are providing advanced training to our corps of volunteer supervisors, as well as future youth conservationists.

• The Healthy Waters St. Croix BMP Tour is a virtual tour of Great River Greening’s work under our Healthy Waters St. Croix Initiative.  The tour is a way to profile the projects completed under this initiative and share the procedures used.