Building on Our Success from 2021

At a year’s end, we often find ourselves reflecting on the rivers of our lives – the twists and turns, the obstacles and hazards, the pure joy of a successful descent. We may reflect on the metaphorical or literal rivers of our lives, but either way we know in our hearts that rivers teach us more lessons and give us more strength than we’ll ever be able to give back. These reflections help us to realize the true, incalculable value of a clean, free-flowing river. At American Whitewater, these reflections fuel us. They drive our insatiable appetites to protect, restore and create opportunities to enjoy rivers across the country. 

Our small crew of 12 staff members delivers outsized river stewardship results and touches dozens more projects every year than most organizations of our size. Killing dams, securing federal funding to remove more dams and protecting public access are but a few of the big positive impacts we’ve had on the rivers you love in 2021. You can see our biggest contributions to river stewardship last year in our Year End Impact Graphic. You can also rest assured that we’ll keep it up, as we’re a Charity Navigator 4-star rated organization 11 years running. We’re an extremely efficient team, spending 87% of every dollar we receive on stewardship activities and we've got big stewardship goals for 2022. 

None of this work would be possible without the generous support from our community!