Springs Stewardship Institute

WE PROMOTE AND IMPROVE SCIENTIFIC UNDERSTANDING AND STEWARDSHIP OF SPRINGS ECOSYSTEMS AND THE RIPARIAN SYSTEMS THEY SUPPORT. WE PURSUE THIS MISSION THROUGH RESEARCH, SHARING INFORMATION, STEWARDSHIP, AND COLLABORATION. WE WORK CLOSELY WITH INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS WITH SIMILAR GOALS TO PLAN AND CONDUCT SPRINGS RESEARCH AND DISSEMINATE THE RESULTS. WE PROVIDE INFORMATION, TRAININGS, ADVISEMENT, TOOLS, AND EXPERTISE, BOTH DIRECTLY AND ELECTRONICALLY, TO INTERESTED SPRINGS STEWARDS. WITH THE GOAL OF REACHING A BROAD AND INCLUSIVE AUDIENCE, WE CONDUCT OUTREACH AND EDUCATION BY PUBLISHING OUR FINDINGS AND PROVIDING LECTURES AND OTHER PRESENTATIONS. WE PROVIDE ADVISEMENT AND ASSISTANCE TO AGENCIES CONDUCTING RESTORATION OR OTHER MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE THE ECOLOGICAL CARE OF SPRINGS. THESE STRATEGIES ARE DESIGNED TO ADVANCE SUSTAINABLE ECOLOGICAL STEWARDSHIP OF SPRINGS ECOSYSTEMS FOR THE BENEFIT OF NATURE AND HUMANITY.

SPRINGS ECOSYSTEM INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT CONSULTING - THE PRIMARY FOCUS OF OUR PROGRAM IS TO INVENTORY AND ASSESS SPRINGS ECOSYSTEMS, AND TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO LAND MANAGERS ABOUT IMPROVED STEWARDSHIP. LAND MANAGERS INCLUDE PRIVATE LANDOWNERS, FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES, TRIBES, AND OTHER NGOS. WE SUBMITTED AN ANNUAL REPORT FOR EACH PROJECT THAT INCLUDED SUMMARY REPORTS OF DATA COLLECTED. WE ALSO PROVIDED A GEODATABASE TO LAND MANAGERS, AS WELL AS HOSTING THEIR DATA ON SPRINGS ONLINE, OUR ONLINE DATABASE AT HTTPS://SPRINGSDATA.ORG. MOST OF SSI'S SUPPORT CAME FROM THE US FOREST SERVICE. SSI HAS AN MOU WITH THE NATIONAL-LEVEL FOREST SERVICE TO MANAGE ALL OF THEIR SPRINGS DATA. WE ALSO CONDUCTED ECOLOGICAL INVENTORIES FOR THE STATE OF NEVADA.

SPRINGS ECOSYSTEM TRAINING - SSI PROVIDES EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL, TRAINING, AND TOOLS FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC, STUDENTS, RESEARCHERS, LANDOWNERS, AGENCIES, TRIBES, AND OTHER NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. WE PROVIDE PROTOCOLS, GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT SPRINGS, A USER GUIDE FOR THE ONLINE DATABASE, IMAGES, AND A DICHOTOMOUS KEY TO IDENTIFY SPRINGS TYPES. IN 2021 DUE TO COVID, MOST OF THIS INFORMATION WAS MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH OUR WEBSITE AT SPRINGSTEWARDSHIPINSTITUTE.ORG, AND THROUGH 30+ ONLINE MEETINGS AND TRAININGS.

SPRINGS ONLINE DATA PORTAL - SSI DEVELOPED AND HOSTS SPRINGS ONLINE AT SPRINGSDATA.ORG. THIS ONLINE RELATIONAL DATABASE CONTAINS INFORMATION ABOUT 156,278 SPRINGS, PRIMARILY ACROSS THE WESTERN UNITED STATES. DATA INCLUDES FLOW, WATER CHEMISTRY, VEGETATION, INVERTEBRATES, VERTEBRATES, GEOMORPHOLOGY, GEOREFERENCING, AND IMAGES. IT OFFERS ROBUST REPORTING CAPACITY WITH DOWNLOADS TO EXCEL, WORD, AND GIS FILES. IT ALSO INCLUDES A SPATIAL MODULE THAT ALLOWS USERS TO UPLOAD BOUNDARIES, APPLY VARIOUS BASEMAPS, AND SYMBOLIZE DATA. THE DATABASE PROVIDES FREE ACCESS TO 1,530 USERS - STUDENTS, RESEARCHERS, LANDOWNERS, AGENCIES, TRIBES, AND OTHER NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.