Upper Mississippi Center earns an Eddy Award
Augustana’s Upper Mississippi Center will be honored April 30 with an award from River Action, one of the community’s most preeminent environmental groups.
The college is the winner of River Action’s Eddy Award for education.
“Under the direction of Dr. Michael Reisner, the center has done extraordinary work since its creation in 2012,” the award citation states.
“Dr. Reisner knows how to identify potential, a skill he has used to build the center and enter into partnerships with the City of Davenport, City of Rock Island, Rock Island County Forest Preserve, and most recently with the Milan Bottoms Task Force to assess riparian zones and water quality on 600 acres there.”
The Eddy Awards have been awarded for 27 years to people and institutions who act as an eddy, according to River Action: "Going against the current to accomplish excellence on the Mississippi River in the areas of art, design, revitalization, river activity, education and stewardship.”
Dr. Reisner, associate professor of environmental studies, directs Augustana's UMC, supported by faculty in the sciences. The UMC mobilizes faculty, staff and students to collaborate with communities to solve social, economic and environmental challenges.
Through partnerships with local organizations, governments and nonprofits, the UMC gives students real-world opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills. The UMC's 12 student interns for 2025-26 researched watersheds, wildlife research, ecology and microplastics.
Since 2018, the UMC has been working with the City of Davenport and Partners of Scott County Watersheds to assess water quality, biodiversity, and riparian zone integrity across local creeks in Scott County. Their efforts were featured throughout the documentary film “Moved by Waters.”
The 27th annual Eddy Awards presentation will be among the program highlights as River Action hosts its annual Fish & Fire celebration at the Quad Cities Waterfront Convention Center in downtown Bettendorf, Iowa.
Other recipients of this year’s awards are Art: Melissa Mohr, Figge Art Museum; Design: The City of Moline; Restoration: Jack Cullen '13, Rock Island Downtown Alliance; River Activity: Col. Joe Park, Garrison, Rock Island Arsenal, and LeClaire and Port Byron, organizers of Tug Fest; and Lifetime Achievement: Dean and Deb Mathias for bikeable communities.