The Joyce Foundation Works to Restore a National Treasure

The Great Lakes are home to Earth’s largest supply of fresh water, a thriving tourist and shipping economy, and home to countless species of fish and wildlife. The Great Lakes also supply drinking water to more than 40 million people. But to most Midwesterners, the Great Lakes are just home.

For all of these reasons, The Joyce Foundation hired Valerie Denney Communications to raise public awareness about the need for a comprehensive clean-up of the Great Lakes, where health problems from raw sewage, industrial waste and other pollutants has reached a crisis point. For the past four years, VDC has provided campaign strategy and media coordination for a coalition of 40 groups in 10 states—led by the National Wildlife Federation—seeking to pass the Great Lakes Restoration Bill in Congress.

To date, VDC has helped generate more than 1,500 news stories about the about restoration effort, while also assisting in campaign management, message development, production of collateral materials and creation of a website.