At Roger Williams University, students are given the opportunity to take classes that provide them with real world experience. The classes are paired with a partner from the surrounding communities, and together, they work to reach a common goal. In Professor Jason Oliver’s marketing course, they have partnered with the Buzzards Bay Coalition in order to work on a campaign that will help to change the behavior of members, as well as, further promote the protection of the watershed.
The Buzzards Bay Coalition is a nonprofit organization in New Bedford, Massachusetts that is dedicated to Buzzards Bay and its watershed. They are membership-supported and have focused on the restoration, protection, sustainable use, and enjoyment of the area since 1987. Buzzards Bay is a body of water that stretches from Bourne, Massachusetts all the way to Little Compton, Rhode Island. The bay suffers from issues including; bacterial contamination, oil spills, and both nitrogen and toxic pollution. A few ways that the coalition is helping to combat these issues, is by protecting forest area around the bay, working with the owners of cranberry bogs to reduce the overflow of nitrogen pollution in the bay, and restoring streams and wetlands that connect with the bay in order to restore the area’s ecosystem.
Professor Oliver’s class is working hard to help increase how often individuals visit the bay, as well as, getting people who have never been before to experience it for themselves. So far, the class has been broken up into different teams such as; social media, videography, contact/communication, and surveys. Each team is looking forward to completing this project, and is excited for what is to come.
For more information about the Buzzards Bay Coalition and what they have to offer, go to www.savebuzzardsbay.org
written by: Kenzie Rose
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