Water Leaders Academy Gallery
Since 2009, men and women from every corner of Nebraska have met in a year-long program to learn the principles of first-rate leadership and about the vital role of rivers, streams and aquifers in Nebraska. The mission of the Nebraska Water Leaders Academy is to provide learning opportunities that focus on cooperative approaches to solving Nebraska’s water issues.
Check out our Gallery Below! And head to The Experience Page to find out more information!
Tenured UNL faculty lead both field trip and classroom discussions
Academy participants learn about the Sandhill Crane migration as well as the water and natural resources required to sustain the crane population.
Experts on water compacts and the complexity of water issues use the Whalen Diversion Dam on the Nebraska-Wyoming border as an example of inter-state cooperation.
Whalen Diversion Dam in the Nebraska Panhandle.
The Whalen Diversion Dam provides irrigation water for more than 300,000 acres in the Nebraska Panhandle.
Class room sessions feature Nebraska’s most respected water experts.
Explaining western water issues.
Viewing the North Platte River system from the top of Scottsbluff National Monument in Scotts Bluff County.
Experts explain the use of return flows on secondary irrigation projects during the field trip of the Scottsbluff area in the Panhandle.
A field trip to the Niobrara valley gives a close-up look at waterfalls that occur where streams flowing into the Niobrara run over the erosion-resistant Rosebud formation.
Participants get their feet wet in Stairstep Falls during a field trip to the Niobrara River.
The Rosebud Formation is exposed
Bison on the terrace area above the Niobrara River.
A field trip by airboat on the lower Platte River.
Irrigation is the number one use of water in Nebraska, but municipal water and its management is critical to Omaha.
Checking out historical documents at the Metropolitan Utilities District in Omaha.
Sharing ideas and perspectives.
Participants have a chance to interact during a classroom session.
Session attendees have time to work with their groups on group projects.
Everyone gets a chance to participate in classroom sessions.
John Chapo, president of the Lincoln Children’s Zoo, discusses the responsibilities that go along with leadership.
Each year, Academy Alumni gather for an educational and family event. In 2018 the fun included a UNL baseball game.