Your Vote Will Help Award $50,000

For the second year, MillerCoors and River Network have joined together to award $50,000 in grants to support watershed protection programs focused on agricultural and water issues.

Eight finalists were selected from a pool of applicants nationwide and the winners will be chosen through an online voting competition.

MillerCoors will award the organization that receives the most votes with a $25,000 grant to complete its proposed project. The second place winner will receive $15,000 and the third place vote-recipient will receive $5,000. Five remaining finalists will also receive $1,000.

Voting will remain open until 5:00 p.m., PST on March 26, 2010, and winners will be announced at www.rivernetwork.org on March 31.

A portion of MillerCoors $75,000 donation to River Network will be used to advance the national conservation movement dedicated to protecting our most important natural resource: water.

“Water conservation and quality are key priorities for MillerCoors as water is a primary ingredient in beer – used to grow the barley and hops and flows through every stage of the brewing process,” said Kim Marotta, vice president of corporate social responsibility at MillerCoors. “We are excited to team up with River Network as we believe we have a great responsibility to local communities, some of which supply us with water to make our great beer.”

The eight finalists include:

• Cumberland River Compact; Nashville, TN
• Louisiana Environmental Action Network; Baton Rouge, LA
• Gila Watershed Partnership; Safford, AZ
• Thornapple River Watershed Council; Caledonia, MI
• Porter County Soil and Water District; Valparaiso, IN
• Butler Soil and Water Conservation District; Hamilton, Ohio
• Dan River Basin Association; Eden, NC
• Valley Stewardship Network; Viroqua, WI

Read blog posts from the finalists

Full project summaries can be viewed here

More information on MillerCoors commitment to sustainable development and water stewardship can be found on GreatBeerGreatResponsibility.com.