---

CHANGE THE JAMES AND THE JAMES WILL CHANGE YOU

 The close of 2021 marks the completion of James River Association’s 45th year of protecting America’s Founding River as the only organization solely dedicated to protecting the entire James River and its watershed. When we began as a small band of concerned neighbors in 1976, the James River was in its worst health ever grabbing national headlines with toxic contamination from kepone and the entire tidal river being shut down to any kind of fishing. The same river that the Jamestown settlers fished to stay alive had become too toxic for human consumption.​

​It’s humbling to think that one river can have such a large impact on so many people. But ours is a river unlike any other. So we believe it deserves to be maintained and celebrated. And it’s why we come to work every day with one objective in mind: A fully healthy James River supporting thriving communities.

OUR MISSON

The mission of the James River Association is to be a guardian of the James River. We provide a voice for the river and take action to promote conservation and responsible stewardship of its natural resources.

WE PROTECT

JRA monitors the river, responds to problems, seeks policy changes, and implements on-the-ground projects to restore the river’s health. We protect through our Watershed Restoration, James Riverkeeper, and River Advocacy programs.

WE CONNECT

​JRA helps communities benefit from the river by increasing river access, supporting river-related events, and implementing volunteer projects. We connect through our Environmental Education and Community Conservation programs.

OUR APPROACH

OUR VALUES

Our mission inspires what we do, everyday. Our values ensure that what we do everyday makes a difference.
​

WE ARE ​OPTIMISTS

​​We believe in pragmatic possibility through commitment. We believe we can make an impact.  We believe people can do better. We believe the James can be preserved, improved and power the potential of communities in Virginia.

WE ARE CATALYSTS

We don’t believe in waiting – we drive the change we want.  We believe in the power of creativity and connection to inspire others to share our optimism and uncover possibilities.

CREDIBILITY IS OUR CURRENCY

We believe that operating with integrity, transparency and honesty means our words, our work, and our people can be relied on as true, steady, dependable resources.

COMMUNITY DRIVES EVERYTHING WE DO

We believe in the power of collaboration to serve the larger community.  We support, respect, nurture and empower people. We operate as a community internally and participate as active members of the larger communities we serve to look out for their best interests as it relates to the river.

THE LEADING VOICE FOR OUR RIVER

We patrol over 1,000 miles of the James River

• and its tributaries annually through the James
  RIVERKEEPER® and RiverRats programs. 
• Over the past 10 years, we have secured more
  than $1 billion in state investments for clean water
  programs and achieved policy actions to keep the
  cleanup of the James River on track.
• We conducted a River at Risk advocacy campaign
  to strengthen protections from toxic spills, including
  crude oil train shipments, coal ash ponds, and toxic
  chemical storage.

• We’ve added 47 new access points to the James River and its tributaries since 2013.
• We opened the James River Ecology School on Presquile National Wildlife Refuge.
• We’ve grown JRA environmental education programs from 3,000 students in 2014 to more than 13,000 students in 2021.
  
• We’ve developed a river-wide framework as well as specific local plans to promote heritage tourism, outdoor recreation, wildlife conservation, and landscape-level land protection.
• We offer special river experiences like sturgeon- watching trips to the public and recently opened a new Lynchburg River Center at Amherst County’s Riveredge Park across the river from downtown. There, we have launched James River Adventures, which offers guided river trips as well as canoe, kayak, tubing, and paddleboard rentals in order to connect more people to the James.

COMMITMENT TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Environmental education is a top priority for JRA. Annually, JRA engages more than 13,000 students with hands-on environmental education experiences.

Our programs:

• Build appreciation for the James and create a lifelong understanding of the river.
• Get youth outside, helping address physical, mental and social challenges.
• Engage school systems throughout the watershed to provide opportunities that would otherwise not be available to them, including interactive programs on the water, a leadership program for high school students, and week-long paddling expeditions during the summer.