The Upper Mississippi / Great Lakes Joint Venture is by its very definition a partnership, with each management board organization valued equally and each person on our various committees, workgroups, and networks valued for their roles in our mission. Like prairies, forests, and wetlands, our JV ecosystem can only thrive when the underlying conditions for vigor are met. Partnerships can only succeed when they are built on foundations of trust and respect.

Within our Joint Venture we all bring different perspectives, experiences, and priorities to our collective work. This range of viewpoints can be a powerful engine for collaborative conservation, allowing us to build adaptive and resilient systems of conservation delivery, but without care can also bring discord, bias, and misconception. We understand that success will require us to focus not only on the technical “what are we going to do” aspects of our work, but also on the “how are we going to work together to do it” aspects. We believe that a JV system that supports its members will provide the basis for productive and meaningful conservation.

To that end, we will strive to adhere to our guiding principles:

BE RESPECTFUL

  • We will always act and communicate professionally, bringing forward our best effort and always with good intentions to benefit the team.
  • We will treat each other with courtesy, respect, and tolerance.
  • We will use language and behavior that supports and builds our JV team, free from discrimination, harassment, attacks, or any form of diminishment.
  • We will assume good intentions in others, give each other the benefit of the doubt, and offer grace when needed.
  • We recognize that regardless of setting, we all represent our respective organizations and the Joint Venture.

VALUE DIVERSITY

  • We will intentionally seek to include a range of expertise, viewpoints, cultures, and backgrounds in our partnership.
  • We will communicate and meet in ways that maximize opportunity to participate.
  • We will support each other in our respective views, beliefs, positions, and work.
  • We understand that we all hold biases and we will seek to recognize and resolve them as we work with others.
  • We will welcome change and accept the discomfort that accompanies it.

COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY

  • We will use and promote open, honest discussion with space and facilitation for all voices to be heard
  • We will actively listen to others.
  • We will share information with all who may benefit from it.
  • We will embrace differences when they arise, be open to constructive criticism, and express disagreements respectfully and constructively.
  • We will professionally and productively resolve conflict in a timely manner.

BE ACCOUNTABLE

  • We will hold ourselves and each other accountable for our work and our actions.
  • We understand the behavior we are willing to accept reflects the behavior we condone.
  • We will address language or behavior that is hostile, discriminatory, or inappropriate, and we will enlist the help of authority when needed.

FOCUS ON JV MISSION

  • We will be open to new, innovative, and entrepreneurial ways to work together in pursuit of our mission.
  • We will embrace partnership, working collaboratively to give and ask for help to build stronger relationships.
  • Working together toward a common purpose, we believe our team can make a meaningful difference on habitat to benefit wildlife and people