Newsletter

Autumn 2003

From the Director

We convened a Blue Ribbon Task Force in the spring to envision the Institute's relevance and contribution to the new century. The outcome of this meeting of 12 people, plus your suggestions and ideas, will refresh our mission during the coming months and years. This refreshment will preserve the very best of Institute courses and programs as we address new challenges and meet some wonderful opportunities.

One important challenge is a significant shift in the Institute's financial base. While still enjoying support from a sizable endowment and the gifts of many individual contributors like yourself, we are now broadening our financial base by seeking a small group of major donors who will support the Institute on an ongoing basis. This means that we need not only your continuing support, but also your help in identifying people who would like to join us in a “major donor initiative.” Hopefully, this initiative will bring forth some 25 major donors whose support will allow us to meet promising new opportunities while sustaining our core values and programs.

What are the Blue Ribbon Task Force's recommendations for which we now are seeking financial support? One is to increase our scholarships for students to meet the emerging problem of paying rapidly increasing costs of tuition and fees at their home colleges while still being able to afford to attend at Au Sable. The Institute would provide “incentive scholarships” to recruit high-quality students from previously untapped sources while increasing scholarships for students from our long-standing college and university partners. Another recommendation by the Task Force is to develop and fund a program for undergraduate research to provide the research experience that universities expect from incoming graduate students. And, with this issue of Au Sable Notes, we are responding to their suggestion to publicize the work of Au Sable alumni. (You can see further applications of this suggestion by checking the Au Sable website at www.ausable.org).

On the Institute’s role in educating the church and the wider world, the Blue Ribbon Task Force suggested that we increase our production and dissemination of study materials on Christian environmental stewardship for churches and seminaries. It also recommended making fuller use of the substantial facilities at our Great Lakes and Pacific Rim campuses by expanding our retreat and conference program. A robust program of meetings, conferences and retreats would help a wide range of people -- from churches, colleges and universities, environmental organizations, Elderhostels, and professional organizations -- to advance environmental stewardship through the integration of science, ethics, and praxis.

Of course, you continue to be—as you have been in the past—vital components of the community we call Au Sable! You can personally and directly lend your support to one or more of these initiatives. Please join in to help meet the challenges and opportunities before us. Please help us with the refreshment that you can bring to this great work!

I do hope all is well for you, that you are finding wonderful and effective ways to be a responsible steward in your own life and work. As always, I invite you to drop me a line with any suggestions that might further our shared mission of bringing good news to every creature!

With best regards,

Calvin B. DeWitt
Director