Embassy of the United States Ottawa, Canada

Fulbright Alumna Dr. Janel Curry takes part in the Fulbright Canada-RBC Eco-Leadership Program in Michigan.

Fulbright Alumna, Dr. Janel Curry, just completed the final phase of her Fulbright Canada-RBC Eco-Leadership Program activity, "Building Citizen Understanding through Upstream Restoration Activities." Through this project, she engaged volunteers from western Michigan in the cleanup of Plaster Creek, a tributary which flows into the Grand River and eventually ends up in Lake Michigan.

Although the project takes place in Grand Rapids, Michigan and the surrounding area, it is equally crucial to the health of humans, fish and wildlife downstream. The impact of this polluted tributary reaches across the state and into Canada. The responsibility for clean air and water exists on both sides of our border, and projects like this help restore not only good water quality, but also maintain good international relations. Recognizing this, Fulbright Canada awarded Dr. Curry $4000 in the form of an Eco-leadership grant for 2011-2012 to continue and ultimately finish the project she began in 2004. The project consisted predominately of planting rain gardens in watershed areas that have polluted tributaries flowing through them. A rain garden is created by filling an area through which rain water flows, or has been diverted to flow, with nutrient-rich soil and deep-rooted plants. The soil and plants in these rain gardens serve to filter the pollutants from the water before it flows into larger bodies of water.

The U.S. Embassy Ottawa congratulates Dr. Curry on the completion of this project, and wishes her well in all of her future endeavors.