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Celebrating Pepperell Branch Creek with Amy Zvonar

Watershed stewardship is not all in the “big” wins and success stories. Stewardship can be practiced daily through appreciation and the simple act of noticing and sharing what is around you. 

Celebrating Water is an effort to encourage us to share the wonders that water brings to us through photos, poems, art, writing, or however you like to share the waters you cherish. If you have a Celebrating Water moment to share, email us at awwprog@auburn.edu!

Enjoy our first Celebrating Water feature by AWW Staffer Amy Zvonar.

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Recap: Emily’s Experience as an ACES Summer Intern

By Emily Brown and Amy Zvonar

Earlier this summer, you met AWW’s 2025 Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES) intern, Emily Brown (read Meet Emily Brown here). Emily accomplished numerous projects for Alabama Water Watch this summer, from gathering workshop supplies to helping design educational materials. She also captured many of the beautiful photos we shared on social media and through our blogs! We are extremely grateful for Emily’s dedication to our mission and her willingness to support our outreach programs.

Emily at the AWW Annual Meeting at Graham Creek Nature Preserve in Foley, AL in June. Photo credit: Mona Dominguez

Read on to find out what Emily had to say about her internship experience with Alabama Water Watch and the impact it had on her educational and career path:

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RECAP: Project FARM Educator Professional Development

Project FARM (Fostering Agricultural Research and Mentoring) Professional Development: June 10-11 and July 15-16, 2025

By Amy Zvonar

When students return to their classrooms this fall, in addition to the typical new pencils, paper, and three-ring binders in their classrooms they will also find nets, buckets, and water chemistry test kits. These shiny new school supplies are currently being housed in classrooms in Elmore, Pike and Lee counties. 11 teachers are prepared to facilitate their use by hundreds of 7th and 8th grade science students during the 2025-2026 school year.

Educators with their monitoring supplies provided by Project FARM. Photo credit: Sydney Zinner 
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AWW @ World Affairs Youth Seminar (WAYS)

By Emily Brown

AWW Staff were invited to do a water resources demonstration for the attendees at Auburn University’s World Affairs Youth Seminar (WAYS). The Seminar is an opportunity for 10th-12th grade high school students to “examine global issues in a ‘real world’ context.”

Mona gives an overview of the AWW and 4-H AWW Programs. Photo credit: Emily Brown
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RECAP: 2025 AWW Annual Meeting @ Graham Creek Nature Preserve in Foley, AL!

By: Amy Zvonar and Sydney Zinner

We were thrilled to host the 2025 AWW Annual Meeting at the lovely Graham Creek Nature Center in Foley, AL! We gathered with Volunteer Monitors and Trainers, Board Members, program partners, and new friends to celebrate the accomplishments of our AWWesome Volunteers throughout the last year. Read on for a recap of the day!  

Group photo! Photo credit: Mona Dominguez
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Science Time with BraveHeart Center for Place and Purpose

By: Carolina Ruiz, Amy Zvonar, and Jessie Curl

On a warm, humid, and overcast morning in April, the AWW staff and members of the BraveHeart Center for Place and Purpose met at the Parkerson Mill Creek Greenway on Auburn University’s campus ready for an exciting morning of stream biomonitoring. Rain clouds in the distance were no deterrent; the entire group was eager to see what aquatic mysteries could be found in this shaded section of the creek!  

Amy helps participants search for macroinvertebrates. Photo credit: BCPP Staff
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AWW Director Named River Hero! 

By Sydney Zinner

Big news! AWW Director Mona Dominguez has been honored with one of Alabama Rivers Alliance’s highest accolades—the River Hero Award!  

Mona’s dedication to protecting Alabama’s waterways has made a lasting impact, and we couldn’t be prouder! AWW staff, along with her husband Ariel and daughters Amelia and SJ, were there to celebrate this well-deserved recognition at the Alabama Rivers Alliance Water Rally at Camp Beckwith in Fairhope, AL back in March. 

ARA Executive Director Cindy Lowry, Mona, and ARA Board of Directors Vice President Johnathan McNair. Photo credit: Carolina Ruiz
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Volunteer Trainers Host Workshop in Anniston!

By: Dana Herren and Sydney Zinner

Volunteer Trainers Dana Herren with Logan Martin Protection Association and Jacksonville River Monitors, and Jonathan Kelly of Wild Alabama, and Volunteer Trainer Intern Jecca Shumate-Thomason with the University of Montevallo, led an Alabama Water Watch Bacteriological and Water Chemistry Monitoring Field Day in Anniston, AL on Saturday, March 22.

Volunteers along with program partners. Photo credit: Jecca Shumate-Thomason

They were joined by several program partners who supported the training: Carver Community Center, West Anniston Foundation, Coosa Riverkeepers, Choccolocco Creek Watershed, Wild Alabama, and the Jacksonville River Monitors.

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