When David Samm, General Manager of the Battle River Watershed Alliance, first heard of Photovoice, he knew he'd found a tool he wanted to use. He had been thinking of ways to engage area residents in thinking about the value of the watershed, and the idea of asking them to take photographs of what they liked about it and then gathering to talk about their pictures had immediate appeal. "I liked the idea," he remembers. "It was a fresh approach to what we were doing."

As it turned out, Alberta Ecotrust liked the idea, too, and approved a community grant that allowed David to purchase materials and hire a communications intern, Sarah Skinner, to help design and implement the program.

Several months later, David and Sarah agree that the program not only worked, but led to some unanticipated results. Not only did participants take more photographs than expected, but when they gathered to talk about them they spoke with surprising emotion. "The discussions really brought out the connections people have with the watershed," says Sarah. "The creeks that kids have played in for years, the shoreline walks made special by what grows there - places that people want to hold onto regardless of whatever development the future holds."

"While we thought Photovoice was a good idea, it meant a lot to us that Ecotrust also thought it was a good idea. You expressed confidence in us, and that gave us the encouragement and motivation - to say nothing of the funding - to run with the project."

David Samm, General Manager, Battle River Watershed Alliance

After displaying the photos at several local venues and seeing how they worked to provoke yet further reflection and discussion on what's important, David and Sarah are committed to keeping the project going. "It just works too well," says David, "not to want to keep working with it."

In May, 2011, the Watershed Alliance was awarded a second community grant to extend and expand the project.