All success stories start out with
one good idea. In the case of Watershed Radio, a daily one-minute
environmental snapshot broadcast on radio stations throughout the Chesapeake
Bay watershed, the idea was to build environmental awareness by connecting
people with where they live and the impacts they have on the natural world
every day.
"The intention was to look at the environment from a perspective
that was native to the place where we are," says Watershed Radio
founder Chris Bedford, "rather than abstractly, through stories
about nature in Kenya or somewhere like that."
As a member of the Maryland Chapter of the Sierra Club and editor
of the chapter newsletter, Bedford suggested the idea of a radio program
to his Board of Directors in 1999 and they gave him the go ahead to
see who might be willing to get involved. An ad in the newsletter
that June led to several meetings, the refinement of the concept,
and the development of a six-program pilot series. From the start,
Watershed Radio's growth was spurred on by a very dedicated four-person
group.
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"The Ducks": Watershed
Radio volunteers Janis Opplet, Chris Bedford, Robin
Jung and Andy Roberts.
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The daily series began airing in January 2000 on five stations.
Today, with over 450 programs completed, a companion web site that
archives shows and expands on daily topics, and an ever-growing audience
of listeners, the Watershed Radio idea has become a whopping success.
The all-volunteer production team known as "The Ducks" has
produced stories on everything from the death of an ancient oak tree
to the annual invasion of the horseshoe crabs to Harriet Tubman helping
slaves reach freedom by leading them north along the Eastern Shore
of the Chesapeake Bay.
"The greatest thing about this," says Bedford, "
is the incredible synergy between us all. It's a wonderful, creative
experience and we're all here because we want to be, not because we're
paid…" |
