Clean River Partners

Picture this: a 103-acre island in the middle of a lake, protected for wildlife habitat and recreation.

Pull a boat up to the shore, and you can hunt, fish, or just spend a quiet afternoon emersed in nature. If you're lucky, you might spot the resident bald eagles keeping watch. 

This year, that island became public land.

Clean River Partners helped protect it as part of the Circle Lake Wildlife Management Area, nearly doubling the WMA's size.

It's now open to all Minnesotans, today and for generations to come. We celebrated that milestone at the Governor's Pheasant Hunting Opener with community members, partners, state agencies, and public officials. 

It was noted there that Minnesota may be the "land of 10,000 lakes," but it's also home to more than 1,500 wildlife management areas, protecting over 1.4 million acres of public land. 

Every one of them exists because people came together around a shared love for the outdoors.

That's the heart of what we do.

Clean River Partners helps people take action for clean water in the Cannon River Watershed (and beyond). Protecting special places like this island is one way. 

We also work alongside farmers to support the adoption of conservation practices, and we bring neighbors together through volunteer experiences, film festivals, and time spent in nature. 

But here's what often goes unseen.

Projects like these are funded largely by grants, and grants rarely cover the things that make this work possible: the staff who build relationships with landowners, farmers, and neighbors, the systems that keep projects on track, and the infrastructure that keeps us rooted in community. 

Gifts from people like you do. 

This year, a delayed contract and the unexpected cancellation of an awarded federal grant have left us with a $90,000 gap. 

Now we're asking for your help to close it. Our goal for Give to the Max Day is $3,000.

Every gift, whatever the size, moves us closer to closing the gap and keeps our work grounded in community. Give today, and help us keep saying yes to the next landowner, the next farmer, and the next neighbor ready to take action for clean water.

Donate Today