WATER. ACCESS. VITALITY. EDUCATION. STEWARDSHIP.

We are all the collective voice for Lake Champlain – Vermont’s greatest natural resource. The health and responsible stewardship of the lake is vital to the cultural and economic development of our community. The Community Sailing Center’s core values of Water. Access. Vitality. Education. Stewardship guide us in program development and delivery to adhere to our mission of Lake Access. Life Lessons. For All. We incorporate WAVES elements into all of our programs and operations to enhance environmental learning opportunities and community engagement in sustainability.

WAVES In Action

Here are some examples of WAVES practices at the CSC:

Youth Camps: In every youth program students participate in experiential lessons that connect them to the lake’s ecosystem and history. These lessons connect lake health issues with every individual. For example, with the Lake Champlain Committee (LCC), we monitor for cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) blooms in Burlington Harbor. This monitoring not only aids the LCC, but also allows us to stay informed and educated about water quality in our area of the lake.

Education Programs: Partnering with the Rozalia Project’s trash data collection efforts, every week a group of youth pick up litter along the shoreline before it enters Lake Champlain. Data is tallied and entered into a national database.

Racing: We partner with Sailors for the Seas to certify sustainable regattas and utilize best practices to reduce impacts from our on-the-water events.

Events: With the support of 11^th Hour Racing, we provide a Zip 2 Water mobile filtration system to reduce waste and encourage refillable water bottle usage.

Group Programs: Sailors act as citizen scientists with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation LAY Monitoring program and conduct weekly water quality tests in Burlington Harbor. The water quality samples we take assist the state in assessing phosphorus, chlorophyll, turbidity, and invasive species in Lake Champlain. Every year the state compiles this information for an annual report on the lake’s water quality.

Transportation: With support from Outdoor Gear Exchange we were able to build a bike rack for our facility, encouraging users to minimize their carbon footprint by biking or walking to the Center.

Facilities: Our new Net-Zero Community Waterfront Campus and Sailing Education Center

Interested to learn more? Contact Education Manager Hannah Walton at (802)864-2499 or hannah@communitysailingcenter.org