Citizen Action Training School

The Citizen Action Training School is a civic engagement and watershed and marine ecology program that will train future community leaders to support Puget Sound recovery efforts locally and regionally.

 Check out this testimonial from CATS participants with the North Creek Community Forest.

CATS Participants- Click Here for class materials and recordings (password required).

 

Introduction

The seven Puget Sound Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups (RFEGs) recognize that wild salmon populations cannot survive without a healthy Puget Sound, and are committed to nourishing conscious communities that are advocates for and stewards of their part of the Salish Sea.

And so, the Puget Sound RFEGs are excited to offer a comprehensive adult education program- the Citizen Action Training School, or CATS, which will create a pool of future community leaders who are aware, educated, and active stewards and advocates for their watersheds and the greater Puget Sound.  CATS is a 12 week training program in watershed and Puget Sound ecology, with an added focus on civic engagement in the legal and regulatory  processes that affect resource management.

Curious? Check out this article from NSEA’s Fishtales newspaper written by Bellingham CATS student Sonja Wittmier or this video developed by a student of the Bellingham CATS program as their service project:

Our Sound, Our Community, Our Chance- Citizen Action Training School from Rachel Benbrook on Vimeo.

CATS Program Details

UPDATE:  We are wrapping up the last CATS sessions funded by our first grant round, stay tuned for information about upcoming sessions as they are scheduled.  If you want to be informed of opportunities as they arise, email CATS Coordinator Rachel Benbrook.

CATS sessions are offered free of charge to community members from all around the Sound.  Participants will receive 50 hours of training over three months in the form of weekday evening classes and a few Saturday field sessions.  Following this comprehensive training, participants will give back by volunteering at least 50 hours to plan and complete a service project in their community related to one of three Puget Sound Strategic Initiatives: 1) Prevention of Stormwater Pollution, 2) Protection/ Restoration of Habitat, 3) Recovery of Shellfish Beds.

CATS is a great opportunity for anyone interested in Puget Sound recovery, especially for folks who want the tools to be active in their community and advocate in support of local watersheds and shorelines.   The training sessions will be conducted on a diverse spectrum of issues related to Puget Sound recovery (click here for the CATS Curriculum) and by presenters who are experts in their field, so this is an awesome opportunity for students, government officials, concerned citizens and others to get a great education on both the natural and human communities of Puget Sound.

To see what we have been up to, check out the Executive Summary and Year One and Year Two Final Reports.

Program History

CATS is actually the resurrection of a successful pilot program from the early days of the Puget Sound recovery effort.  The original program, led by the Pilchuck Audubon Society in Snohomish County in 1988, was focused on local watersheds and trained a productive group of participants.  Some of their service projects are still active today, 23 years later!  The long lasting ripple effect of the CATS program caught the eye of the Puget Sound Partnership and led them to set aside funding to bring it back to life, this time with a focus on Puget Sound recovery.

Want to share CATS with your friends? Use this CATS One Pager.

Funding for this program provided by: