May 23rd Membership Meeting

Social Time: 6:30 PM
Meeting:       7:00 PM
Location: CPW Classroom, 4255 Sinton Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80907
Special Event: Raffle Drawing for our Spring 2023 Raffle
Special Guest: Andrew Todd, Founder of Flyathlete/Flyathlon).

Talking about Conservation through Recreation
Dr. Todd went to undergrad at Williams College and got his PhD from CU Boulder.  He was also appointed to serve on the Colorado Water Quality Control Commission for three terms (9 years). Over his career, he has worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, Trout Unlimited, and now for 6 years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.   In 2016, he founded the Colorado-based 501c3, Running Rivers, which is the subject of today's talk.  In his spare time, Dr. Todd is a slow but stubborn trail runner, a decidedly average fly fisherman, an enthusiast of dark and mysterious barrel aged beers, and a guardian of three fierce adventure terriers.

 
Talk Summary:  In 2016, Dr. Todd created Running Rivers in an attempt to enable outdoor enthusiasts to make more of a meaningful difference for native trout species in Colorado and beyond.  The Flyathlon, the flagship program of Running Rivers, pairs trail running, fly fishing, and craft beer into unique events that have raised over $500,000 in the 8 years that they have been held using an incentivized crowdfunding model.  Projects get done on the ground via collaboration with our conservation partners, including Colorado Parks and Wildlife, BLM, USFS, NPS, and other conservation-minded 501c3's like Trout Unlimited.  As more and more people get into the outdoors post COVID, we believe that our model of "Conservation through Recreation" is an essential piece of the puzzle moving forward, empowering runners and anglers to not just respect our natural resources, but to be a part of investing in their persistence into the future.

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