COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
Fresno Irrigation District’s Centennial Celebration Campaign By Kassy D. Chauhan, P.E.
BETWEEN THE SAN JOAQUIN AND KINGS RIVERS, STRETCHING WEST FROM THE SIERRA NEVADA’S LOWEST FOOTHILLS, IS A LAND OF INCREDIBLE CHANGE. TODAY, IT’S THE HEART OF THE NATION’S GREATEST AGRICULTURAL GEOGRAPHY, AND SO MUCH MORE. WITHIN 250,000 ACRES OF THIS LAND HAS RISEN ONE OF CALIFORNIA’S GREATEST URBAN CENTERS, PULSING WITH COMMERCE, CULTURE, AND EVER-GROWING POPULATIONS. These farms and cities, so fortunately sited, are the product of generations of determined human motivation and struggle, as they are matched and paralleled by the development, management, and availability of the region’s most crucial natural resource – water. For 100 years, management and delivery of these life-giving supplies of water have been the responsibilities of an important and remarkable public agency that has evolved over time but continues to make advances in achieving its mission. This is the Fresno Irrigation District (FID) and its 100-year story. To celebrate the Centennial Celebration and share their story, the district developed a consistent, high-quality outreach program to communicate with FID’s growers, municipal partners, and 18
internal and external stakeholders. The strategy was to develop FID’s capabilities to communicate across digital channels while maintaining its traditional communication channels. The district developed three main arteries of communication to expand its reach: a video, social media channels and a website complete with storyboards to highlight the 100-year history, and a publication piece.
Centennial Video:
The cornerstone of this effort was the development of FID’s Centennial Video, created and produced by acclaimed producer Jeff Aiello with 18THIRTY Entertainment. This visually stunning nine-minute video chronicles the history of FID with a series of interviews along with narration by local historian Randy McFarland. The video starts with photos from the mid-19th century, and the story begins by describing the origins of FID’s water rights and the official formation of the district. Throughout the video, voices of FID growers, agency leaders who describe the functions of FID and FID frontline employees who are the backbone of the operations were included along with testimonials from municipal partners – all while highlighting FID’s importance to the region. Always focused on the stakeholder audience, the goal was to celebrate 100 years of conveyance, commitment, and customer service by telling the water-rich story that laid the California Special Districts • July-August 2021
