Events
Local Funding Opportunities Webinar Series
Creating and Leveraging Funding from the Local Level and Beyond is a four-part virtual Lunch & Learn webinar series hosted by the Wildfire and Watershed Initiative for Resilient Colorado (WWIRC). Designed for private and public sector partners including local government, special districts, and forest health collaboratives, the series provides practical, non-partisan education on local and regional public funding strategies that support wildfire mitigation, forest restoration, and watershed resilience.
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Through real-world examples from Colorado and beyond, the webinars explore local taxing mechanisms, regional funding models, conservation finance tools, and the enabling conditions needed to move projects from planning to implementation. The series is intended to support peer learning, highlight lessons learned, and help communities identify sustainable funding opportunities that align with local priorities and capacity.
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Session 1: Overview of Local Funding Opportunities and insights from jurisdictions with local funding measures.
March 10, 2026 12-1pm MT.
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This session provides an overview of local taxing authorities, mechanisms, and other funding opportunities that communities can use to fund wildfire mitigation, forest restoration, and watershed resilience by exploring examples and lessons from communities using established funding tools.
Speakers:
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Jason Swann, Conservation Finance Program Director, Trust for Public Land​
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Chief Brad White, Grand Fire Protection District No. 1
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Allegra Waterman-Snow, Eagle County Conservation District
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Jay Sage and/or Dan Dertz, Douglas County​
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Session 2: Exploring Regional Models for Local Funding
March 31, 2026 12-1pm MT. ​
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This session will explore regional and place-based funding models, such as watershed funds, forest improvement districts, and multi-jurisdictional collaborations, that can support sustained investment in wildfire mitigation and watershed resilience.
Speakers:
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Esther Duke, Chief Operations Officer Coalitions & Collaboratives (COCO)
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Jackie Brown, Yampa River Fund Board Chair
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Julie Dubin, Peaks to People Water Fund
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Amy Moyer, Colorado River District
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Kevin Whelan, Colorado Fire Commission, Chairman of Forest Improvement District Subcommittee
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Session 3: Leveraging Conservation Finance Tools at the Local Level
May 12, 2026 12-1pm MT.
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This session will examine how local governments, utilities, corporates, and partners can use conservation finance tools to stretch public dollars, aggregated contributions, reduce risk, and advance the pace, scale, and impact of forest restoration and watershed projects.​
Speakers
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Todd Gartner, World Resources Institute (Moderator)
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Bryan Rupar, Central Arkansas Water, Green Bonds
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Natasha Collins, WRI, State Revolving Loan Funds
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Jess Kirby, Summit County Utah, Utah Resilience Fund
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Phil Saksa, Blue Forest, Forest Resilience Bond
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Session 4: Enabling Factors and Opportunities for Building Local Funding at Scale
June 9, 2026 12-1pm MT.
​This session will discuss the strategies and opportunities local governments and partners have to successfully fund and implement wildfire mitigation and forest restoration projects at scale.​​​
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Forest Restoration Economy Summit​
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The Forest Restoration Economy Summit is hosted by WWIRC on May 15, 2026, in Granby, CO. The Summit will bring together decision-makers, practitioners, industry leaders, and investors to accelerate the pace and scale of forest restoration by advancing Colorado’s Forest Restoration Economy.
As wildfire risk intensifies and pressures on forest and watershed health grow, the Summit is designed to deepen a shared understanding of forest restoration as both an ecological imperative and an economic opportunity—one that supports wildfire risk reduction, watershed resilience, jobs, and rural economies.
Structured as a solutions-oriented forum, the Summit will combine expert panels with facilitated dialogue and targeted breakout sessions. Participants will explore the full Forest Restoration Economy system, including markets, workforce, infrastructure, policy, finance, technology, and metrics, with a focus on identifying practical strategies and opportunities for action.
The convening will prioritize cross-sector collaboration and deeper dialogue, creating space to surface actionable strategies, identify investment and policy opportunities, and build alignment needed to support restoration at scale. Insights generated through the Summit will inform WWIRC’s ongoing strategy and future engagement with partners and policymakers.
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In person attendance for the event is full, we welcome virtual attendance for presentations during the morning session, approximately 9:30am-1:30pm. ​
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