The Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership (MGLP) is releasing its Strategic Plan for the next five years. The plan reaffirms the MGLP’s mission to “Work together to protect, rehabilitate and enhance sustainable fish habitats in glacial lakes of the Midwest for the use and enjoyment of current and future generations.” The plan makes clear that fish habitats include all of the chemical, physical, and biological aspects of the places that fishes use throughout their lives, a definition which drives the MGLP’s focus on conservation of lake ecosystems.
The Strategic Plan identifies specific, achievable objectives for the MGLP and its partners to accomplish within the next five years in science, outreach, and management. Overarching objectives include implementation of fish habitat conservation projects, conducting ecological assessments of Midwest glacial lake habitats, improving efficiency and efficacy of lake habitat conservation projects, and conduct education and outreach to encourage fish habitat conservation.
How will the MGLP accomplish the goals in the Strategic Plan? The MGLP Education and Outreach Team produces outreach products such as the Lake Conservation webinar series and the Shoreline Living booklet. The Science and Data Team develops science products such as the MGLP Conservation Planner. The MGLP Steering Committee oversees partnership activities, including grant awards through our Lake Conservation Grant program. Whether your objectives are science, habitat management, or outreach, there are likely opportunities for you to participate.
“This Strategic Plan represents a major step forward for the MGLP as we focus on concrete actions that we can achieve with our partners in the next five years,” said MGLP Steering Committee Chair Todd Tisler. “We have teams working on many of these objectives right now; we encourage agencies and individuals that are new or perhaps haven’t participated to review the MGLP’s planned actions, identify whether any of those actions align with their own objectives, and if you are willing, please join us in our efforts to conserve inland lake habitats.” Those interesting in participating in the partnership or in more information can reach out to MGLP Coordinator Joe Nohner.