For thirty years, the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay has promoted a collaborative approach to the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers. The origins of the regional restoration effort, and of the Alliance itself, were based on the need for collaboration.

In 1971, a coalition of concerned citizens set out to bridge opinions, state lines, and preconceived ideas. Their efforts brought regional leaders together to discuss a coordinated approach to the Bay restoration. The result was the formation of the Citizens Program for the Chesapeake Bay, since renamed the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay.

The Alliance was then, and remains today, the only organization focused on saving the Bay through collaboration, partnerships, and consensus. Our reputation as a source of accurate, unbiased information also makes us unique and clearly distinguishes us from other organizations and agencies.

The EPA-sponsored Chesapeake Bay Program, initiated in 1976, was modeled on the Alliance's philosophy of consensus-building. Soon after its founding in 1971, the Alliance came under the leadership of Frances Flanigan. Under her guidance, the Alliance established a headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland, and branch offices in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Richmond, Virginia. Staff are also housed in the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program Office in Annapolis to help carry out specific Chesapeake Bay Program initiatives.

In 2001, Fran Flanigan retired, and a new president, David Bancroft, was hired to lead the Alliance into the 21st century. Under his leadership, a new office has been opened in Washington, D.C., creating new opportunities for the Alliance's work in the nation's capital.

Our members, our board and our staff have all been instrumental in raising important issues to the attention of policy makers; alerting citizens to the need to become informed and speak out on Bay matters; and crafting innovative, consensus based approaches to addressing thorny and contentious issues.

Over the years, the Alliance has been instrumental in:

• establishing multi-jurisdictional goals for the Chesapeake Bay Program;
• involving new stakeholders in the charge to restore the Chesapeake Bay;
• expanding awareness and action "upstream" of the Bay itself;
• empowering local-level efforts through networking and training; and
• communicating sound science and policy issues central to the Bay's restoration to the general public, especially through the Bay Journal and Bay Communications Office.