Who We Are
The Oswego Lake Watershed Council (OLWC) is a locally organized, non-profit, non-regulatory watershed stewardship organization established to improve the condition and health of the Oswego Lake watershed and its stream network. CLICK HERE to open a copy of our Fact Sheet.
The OLWC formed in 2010, and the Council meets regularly to work together on projects that support watershed health. The OLWC Board has adopted a strategic plan which outline objectives, strategies, time frames and evaluation measures as they relate to OLWC goals for organizational sustainability, ecological integrity of the watershed, and outreach and education.
What We Do
The council works to enhance, restore, and maintain the physical, chemical, and biological integrity of the Oswego Lake watershed by fostering project planning, development, funding, and implementation. It develops a dynamic strategic action plan to support holistic conservation and restoration from ridge top to ridge top and headwaters to Oswego Lake. The council monitors watershed health and project progress, conducts condition assessments, and organizes watershed data to promote awareness. It also facilitates collaboration among stakeholders, supports landowners, promotes education and outreach, and reviews land management plans. Additionally, the council helps secure funding for ecosystem restoration and provides a forum for cross-jurisdictional cooperation to positively impact the environment, economy, and community.
Our Mission
The mission of the Oswego Lake Watershed Council is to foster stewardship, education, participation and financial support for the purpose of the conservation, restoration, enhancement and maintenance of watershed functions that achieve and sustain a healthy watershed.
Our Vision Statement
The vision of the Oswego Lake Watershed Council is a healthy, properly functioning watershed. This vision is of streams, wetlands, riparian forests, upland forests/trees, Oswego Lake, and other natural resources working together as a sustainable ecological system that supports good water quality, productive habitat for native plant and animal communities, and enhanced quality of life.
Land Acknowledgement
The land that we now call home, Lake Oswego, Oregon, is the ancestral home and land of the Tualatin (Atfalati) band of the Kalapuyan Tribe, Clackamas bands of the Upper Chinook, and other native groups. Their tribal members today are represented by the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, and other indigenous groups. Indigenous peoples successfully lived on and cared for this land for millennia prior to European colonization, and continue to do so today. We acknowledge and mourn the loss of life and a way of living in harmony with all of creation. We seek to respectfully listen, learn and apply indigenous knowledge to the healing of the land and all beings who interact with the Oswego Lake Watershed. We commit to building relationships and advancing environmental justice.
This webpage is a living document managed by our Equity Action Team and members of our board. This document is meant to provide background on OLWC’s journey to becoming a more equitable organization and will be regularly updated to reflect what we’ve been learning. A variety of voices within our watershed council community contributed to this document. Personal statements will be linked throughout.
Equity Statement
Oswego Lake Watershed Council strives to be a welcoming, equitable, just, and inclusive organization. We are working to actively include cultures, world-views, and other ways of knowing that have been historically excluded from the Western scientific worldview, which has informed much of our existing land stewardship practices. We acknowledge that the natural world has suffered because of this lack of representation and understanding. Our own awareness of the present conditions of these lands—and the fuller picture of the earth’s struggle for health—depends on how we listen to many voices, past and present, as we engage our vision and goals. We strive to work forward with that principle as part of our perspective in the way we work with the land and form partnerships.
The Council is committed to advancing environmental justice and doing our part to enrich the lives of all people who interact with the Oswego Lake Watershed and play integral roles in its ecological functions.