Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy (WSA) was founded in 2008 as a partnership of the County’s Public Schools and Department of Public Works, and today it is a true public-private partnership. WSA teaches and equips people with the skills, resources, and connections needed to foster healthy communities and environments, supporting sustainable landscapes and clean waters throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Since its inception, WSA has trained more than 400 Watershed Stewards, planted over 255,000 native trees and plants, and engaged more than 350,000 residents in local conservation efforts.
WSA offers several programs that enable residents to take action and strengthen their communities, including the Watershed Steward Certification Course, RePlant Anne Arundel and Annapolis, Save Our Trees, Wildflowers in a Weekend, and the annual Spring into Action Conference.
Watershed Stewards are local leaders who engage communities to reduce polluted runoff into our waters. Through WSA’s Certification Course, residents of all experience levels are trained and certified by WSA to install and maintain pollution-reducing landscape projects and encourage community efforts that make an environmental difference. Visit WSA’s Certification Course page to learn more about how to become a certified Watershed Steward.
RePlant Anne Arundel and Annapolis is a tree planting program which directly responds to the acres of forests lost in our urbanized County. Since 2020, RePlant Anne Arundel has planted over 20,000 trees and engaged over 4,500 residents to plant trees on their properties or community properties. For more information about the programs under the RePlant umbrella, check out the RePlant webpage.
Save Our Trees seeks to have immediate and long-term impacts on the removal of invasive ivy and vines in Anne Arundel County and Annapolis. With the help of volunteer residents, neighbors, and friends, over 11,760 trees have been saved since 2022. To learn how to help, read more about the Save Our Trees program.
Wildflowers in a Weekend is a program offering residents new to native gardening an easy way to get started with a ready-to-install native plant kit - no experience required! Available for sunny or shady areas, each kit includes 18 native plants, instructions, a biodegradable plant-placement template, and plant information cards. The program runs once every spring - click here to learn more about when you can get your Wildflowers in a Weekend kit.
The Watershed Stewards Academy can be found online on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Check out their website, and request their newsletter here. To read their impact statement for 2024-25, click this link, and here is their Calendar of Events.
