The Walla Walla Watershed Alliance, herein referred to as “the Alliance” was established in December of 2001. Governed by a Board of Directors, the Board consists of nine representatives from agriculture, economic development, water conservation, and tribal or cultural sectors residing in either Washington or Oregon. The Alliance is currently staffed by an Executive Director and Basin Advocate. The Alliance is a broad-based bi-state non-profit 501(c)3 organization providing local leadership committed to fostering advocacy and innovation for the environmental, economic, and cultural health of the Walla Walla Basin.

The principle and purpose of the Alliance are embodied in the Walla Walla Promise made on May 8^th, 2002, the local citizens pledged to work together, within the forum of the Walla Walla Watershed Alliance, to restore and maintain the ecological, cultural, and economic health of the Walla Walla Basin.

These citizens, now Alliance Board Members made this commitment on behalf of the future for the next seven generations and beyond. A promise made, to ourselves and to our children, is a promise kept. Since its inception the Alliance has been committed to providing leadership within the Walla Walla Basin, facilitating coordination of stakeholders in both Oregon and Washington. The Alliance is the only non-governmental entity that encompasses the entire bi-state basin, providing a forum for dialogue, a neutral forum for agreements and grievances.

The Alliance provides a structured and formal venue for the purpose of basin stakeholders to gather a coordinate a common strategy, strengthening and enhancing productive relationships between basin stakeholders. The Alliance provides a voice for out-of basin communication to potential funding sources and legislative bodies in both Salem, Oregon and Olympia, Washington.

The Alliance has received recognition from the Federal government for achievements in collaboration and conservation. In 2005 the Alliance was awarded the White House Cooperative Conservation Award.

Alliance Goals and Objectives

1) Relationship Building: Strengthen and enhance productive relationships between key stakeholders in the basin.

a. Continue to build relationships and asset map of basin stakeholders.

b. Gain stakeholder support with an emphasis on keeping their minds open.

2) In-basin Leadership: Provide political leadership within Walla Walla Basin to assist on key issues.

a. Keep the basin in charge of our own destiny (self-determination).

b. Maintaining holistic focus on ecology and economy.

c. Facilitate the coordinated cooperation of stakeholders in the State of Washington and the State of Oregon (Olympia and Salem).

d. Provide a forum for dialogue, safe place to discuss points of agreement, grievances, and problems for diverse interests.

e. Provide structured and formal place and process for multiple basin stakeholder interests to gather and coordinate a common strategy.

3) Communication: Communication effort with local, regional, state, tribal, and federal officials on policy and program issues important to the basin.

a. Communicate and coordinate actively with basin stakeholders.

b. Promote communication of stakeholder activities to out-of-basin interests, through a unified voice.

c. Effectively utilize the collective political connections of our Board Members for the betterment of the basin.

d. Provide recognition of the basin’s success and stakeholder efforts.

4) Innovation: Encourage innovative management, implementation programs, best practices; such as the Water Management Initiative.

5) Supportive Water Management Policy: The Alliance will help develop a unified “basin voice” to brief, consult with, and constructively engage federal, regional, tribal, state, and local governments, environmental organizations, and other water interest groups to resolve policy challenges in the Basin.

6) Funding: Actively seek funding for basin projects and programs.

a. Coordination of overall funding requests, legislative asks that represent a collaborative unified priority of funding from basin stakeholders.

7) Water & Environmental Center: Continue to support the Walla Walla Community College to develop and implement a strong water management program.