"Quit mowing": Turning Minnesota lake homeowners into shoreline stewards, one lawn at a time. (MPR News)

 Image from mprnews.org, Ben Hovland | MPR News

I recently came across an article published last August by MPR, describing a program launched on the Brainerd, MN Gull Chain of Lakes. The article describes a grassroots initiative that encourages and rewards property owners who preserve or restore their natural shorelines to help keep lake pollution in check. A report issued last year by the Minnesota Natural Shoreline Partnership states that almost half the state’s natural shorelines have been lost to suburban-style development.

The program is in its sixth year. There are 102 members on the Gull chain, and it recently reached a milestone with 15 percent of the 650 property owners contacted via email joining the effort.

The article goes on to say that the program has spread to dozens more lakes across Minnesota. Supporters view it as part of a strategy to help change societal norms and expectations around lakeshore development, and help slow the loss of natural shoreline that protects lakes from pollution.

The climate challenges we face often seem insurmountable. I've never been a fan of the phrase you need to eat an elephant one bite at a time, but this is a perfect illustration of the expression's intent. The people around Gull Lake are an inspiring example of individuals identifying a problem and doing what they can to solve it. Thankfully, many others are advocating for the environment on a smaller scale, like Nicholas Marketing client, the Pollinator Friendly Alliance. If more of us become involved in addressing the climate issues we can do something about, the cumulative results would be amazing.