Environmental educators from the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and the Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership have worked with schools and teachers in Providence and Cranston since 2020 to engage students about stormwater, how it affects water quality and wildlife habitat and how humans can help. The science-themed lessons are a mixture of in-person time at each school, as well as outdoors in Roger Williams Park, incorporating the high concentration of green infrastructure projects in the park that are designed to improve water quality.  

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Students then take the information and knowledge that they learn about stormwater and water quality and work with a teaching artist to develop and design a stormwater-themed art project.  Originally, murals were painted near storm drains around their schools to help educate the general public about what is in stormwater runoff, what happens to it once it goes down the drain and how it can affect nearby lakes, rivers and estuaries.  A compilation of all student designed storm drain murals can be viewed and located on this MAP.  We documented the student's learning and design process as well as the final outcome of the murals with a short video that was showcased at the 2021 Rain Harvest Festival.  

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In 2023, students worked with teaching artists to create designs to paint onto rain barrels donated by Coca-Cola Beverages - Northeast. Some barrels were placed at participating schools, and some barrels will be auctioned or raffled leading up to and during the 2023 Rain Harvest Festival, which will be held on Sunday, September 24th, 2023.