Lakeland Reports: A Communicative Tool in Watershed Management

Abstract

To communicate ecological information for watershed management, an inter-disciplinary program in northern Michigan used a variety of mutually reinforcing techniques including a series of Lakeland Reports — short, self-contained brochures with a blend of hard information (factual data) and soft (general principles); local data, illustrations, action implications, and quizzes were used to stimulate involvement. A survey of recipients found that the series had captured reader interest; a large majority judged it useful to themselves and even more rated it useful to public officials. Many of the reports could be adapted for environmental communication in other inland lake regions by retaining soft information and substituting local illustration and hard data.