Rio Grande Water Conservancy District

The Rio Grande Water Conservancy District serves citizens in the San Luis Valley of Colorado by helping develop and protect water resources in the upper Rio Grande River basin. A proposed pipeline project by Renewable Water Resources (RWR) sought to move water from the San Luis Valley to Douglas County. The District took a stand against the project and needed assistance to rally locals to speak out and stop it from progressing.

Sigler was hired to develop a communications advocacy campaign to protect the water rights of farmers and ranchers in the San Luis Valley and share the economic damage that water export would have on the region's economy.

We embarked on an issue analysis that included interviews with 30 local and statewide stakeholders to discern concerns, opportunities and threats. We built a communications campaign from scratch that included developing a campaign name (Protect San Luis Valley Water), a slogan (Water Connects Us), and all associated campaign materials including a website, social media channels, media relations materials, eNewsletters and videos.

Social media engagement has been extremely high, and the campaign is filling an information void. Influencers and locals are sharing content and engaging in the dialogue. This approach created a groundswell of informed citizens who spoke up at public meetings and through the news media and continue to speak out to stop funding for the RWR project in Douglas County.