Color Of Water
Elevating Indigenous, Black, Latinx, and other voices of color to change the narrative around water.
Oluwole (OJ) McFoy
Houston Public Works
Tanner Yess
Groundwork Ohio River Valley
Parsa Saffarinia
University of California, Davis
Michael Mendez
UC Irvine
Jeremy Orr
Earthjustice
Damian Shapes Padilla
Georgetown University
Arohi Sharma
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Damian Shapes Padilla
Spirit Rock Consulting
Ehab Meselhe
Tulane University
Priscila B R Alves
University of Maryland
André Sanchez
California Wilderness Coalition
Jorge Roman-Romero
Georgetown University Law Center
Chauncey Foster
we.grow.eco
Brenda Coley
Milwaukee Water Commons
Wendy “Poppy” Ferris-George
Ferris Institute
Alex Ortiz
Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter
Ashwin Dhanasekar
Brown and Caldwell
Nicole Chavas
Greenprint Partners
Analise Rivero
California Trout
Joy Banner
The Descendants Project
Joy Banner
The Descendants Project
Newsha Ajami
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
Bleu Adams
IndigeHub
Nikki Tulley
University of Arizona
Jaiden Willeto
Northern Arizona University / K'é Infoshop
Sapna Mulki
Environmental Policy Innovation Center
Maritza Mendoza
GreenLatinos
Angel Santiago Fernandez-Bou
Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)
Mariana Del Valle Prieto Cervantes
GreenLatinos
John Echohawk
Native American Rights Fund
Angela M Chalk
Healthy Community Services
Nicole Nelson
Equity Legal Services, Inc
Afia Zakiya
Independent Africana Studies and EJ scholar-activist, currently Executive Director of Africatown Heritage Preservation Foundation
Tony Bridges
The Maryland General Assembly
Ayako Tischler
Moonshot Missions
Ruthie Redmond
Trimtab Sustainable Waters
Shama Perveen
CERES
Daniel Cordalis
Native American Rights Fund
Maria Elena Kennedy
Kennedy Communications, Inc
Sidney Opiyo
University of California, Santa Cruz
Victor Galvan
Denver Mayor's Office for Climate Action, Sustainability and Resilience
Anita Shervington
BLAST Fest
Sonali Abraham
Pacific Institute
Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud
Bayou City Waterkeeper
Angela Mooney D’Arcy
Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples
Rachele Lopez
San Diego Coastkeeper
Emma Robbins
Planet Woman
Ed Marin
Louisville Water
Cyatharine Alias
Center for Neighborhood Technology
Jo Banner
The Descendants Project
Rhea Drozdenko
Connecticut River Conservancy
Carlos Moran
Northeast Trees
Sandi Matsumoto
The Nature Conservancy
Olga Cano
Environmental Protection Agency
Khalid Osman
Stanford University
Val Schull
GreenLatinos
Vicky Espinoza
The Nature Conservancy
Carolan Sonderegger
For Love of Water
Nasim Pica
Weston Solutions, Inc.
Dira Johanif
Charles River Climate Compact
Charles Cassagnol
Western Ecology, LLC
Adriana Renteria
State Water Board
Jazmin Ricks
University of Pennsylvania
Sydney Garcia
The Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation
Vinicius Taguchi
North Carolina State University
Danielle Rivera
University of California Berkeley
Quentin Stubbs
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš
Azul
Frank Ruiz
Audubon California
Angela Guyadeen
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Chakena Perry
NRDC
Jose Luis Ortiz y Muniz
Greenroots Institute
Rhysea Agrawal
The Xylom
Crystal Davis
National Parks Conservation Association
Pablo Ortiz
Union of Concerned Scientists
Nureen Faiza Anisha
Oregon State University
Gia Moreno
Hood Community Council
Kristi Pullen Fedinick
The George Washington University
Ngodoo Atume
UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences
Nahal Ghoghaie
Kearns & West
Marc Oliver Quijano
Jacobs
Veronica Garibay
Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability
Vinicius Taguchi
North Carolina State University
Cheyanne Harris
Brown and Caldwell
santos samayoa
Comms Consultant
Ani Jayakaran
Washington State University
Jeremiah Muhammad
Blacks In Green
Emily Raquel Warren Armitano
Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation
Lucero Sanchez
San Diego Coastkeeper
Marleen Villanueva
Department of Women and Gender Studies at Texas Christian University
Carlos Calderon
Wmeac
Fernando Ramirez
Hydraloop Inc.
Breanna Gonzalez
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Oday Salim
University of Michigan Law School
Marccus Hendricks
University of Maryland - College Park
Bridget Ray
Washington State Department of Commerce
Nathaniel I Kollie
University of California Santa Cruz
Paula Buchanan
National Center for Domestic Preparedness (NCDP), Columbia Climate School
Dezaraye Bagalayos
Allensworth Progressive Association
Cate Mingoya-LaFortune
Groundwork USA
Cheyenne Holliday
Verde
Huda Alkaff
Wisconsin Green Muslims
Alai Reyes-Santos
University of Oregon
Beth Roach
Sierra Club
Lenise Marrero
Brown and Caldwell
Nusrat Molla
Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University
Sanjiv Sinha
Corvias Infrastructure Solutions, LLC.
Alastair Bitsóí
Inside Climate News
Martin Griffin
Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District
Julian Gonzalez
Earthjustice
Jessica Dandridge-Smith
The Water Collaborative
Alondra Hernandez
WEAT
Kedar Dabhadkar
Lam Research
Shandin Pete
University of British Columbia
Harshini Ratnayaka
Save the Dunes
Arsum Pathak
National Wildlife Federation
Sarah Traore
The University of Texas at Austin
Pedro Hernandez
GreenLatinos
Jacob Bernal
Washington State University
Alyssa Senturk
California Water Data Consortium
Kimbaya Carriere
First Nations Fisheries Council- Water For Fish
Nasim Pica
Antea Group USA
Vidya Balasubramanyam
Coastal States Organization
Cathie Chavez-Morris
Equidad Group
Monica Driggers
Massachusetts Rivers Alliance
Andrian Lee
BCM Environmental and Land Law, PLLC
Briana Muñoz
Pacific Coast Carbon LLC
Billie Li
Massachusetts Department of Transportation
Naveen Adusumilli
Louisiana State University
Jahan Taganova
One Young World Peace Ambassador
Joaquin Esquivel
California State Water Resources Control Board
Charming Evelyn
OceanWell Water
Thea Louis
Duke Energy Corporation
Jessica Thrasher
Colorado Water Center
Crystal Sanders-Alvarado
Seaworthy
Xochitl Bervera
Near Futures Projects/Water is Life Oysters
Nataly Escobedo Garcia
Leadership Counsel for Justice & Accountability
Diana Piña Yitbarek
NC Department of Environmental Quality
Ciara Horne
SBG Digital
Nadine Robertson
Manchac Management Services and Consulting Group
Tiffany Sevilla
Greenprint Partners
Cindy Donis
East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice
Jared Romero
Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership Inc
Gabe Vasquez
US Congress
Elizabeth Ruiz
Salmon and Steelhead Monitoring Program
Julia Fay Bernal
Pueblo Action Alliance
Heather Tanana
University of California, Irvine
Daniela Sherrill
ASU / AZ Water for All
Maritza Mendoza
GreenLatinos
Silvia R. Gonzalez
UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute
Sri Vedachalam
Cisolutions
Susana De Anda
Community Water Center
Esteban Ortiz
Columbia Riverkeeper
Andrea León-Grossmann
Vote Solar
Rob Larson
Grand Valley State University
Maisah Khan
Regenerative Agriculture Foundation
Rene Henery
Trout Unlimited/ University of Nevada, Reno
Mahtaab Bagherzadeh
NWF/Clean Water for All
Felice Green
Milwaukee Water Commons
Chriscilia Cox
SUMA Consulting LLC
Temiloluwa Akinyemi
Monterey Bay Aquarium/University of California Santa Cruz
José M. Rodríguez-Flores
Environmental Defense Fund
Roland Jones
CIS
Ean Tafoya
GreenLatinos / CO Dept. of Public Health and Env.
Keiko Wilkins
University of Hawaii at Manoa
trending topics
These are the top topics that reporters, decision makers, and partners are looking for experts to speak about.
Video Library
Watch water experts share their stories and perspectives with reporters, event audiences, podcast hosts, and more.




About Us
The Color of Water Initiative was created by the Water Hub to build voice and visibility for people of color in the water movement. Our goal is to connect reporters with a more diverse set of experts, and build capacity for these experts to elevate the stories of their communities, which have often been left out of conversations around water.
From water access and drought response in the West to lead pipes and PFAS pollution in the Great Lakes; to recurring flooding and water infrastructure failures in the South, Color of Water members have deep expertise and first-hand experience on water challenges and solutions all across the country.
Read the joint statement by Color of Water members on the launch of the Color of Water directory and the importance of equity and inclusion in the water world.
experts across the country
Register to Join our Expert Directory
If you identify as a person of color with expertise in water (including lived experience or ancestral knowledge) or work in fields that intersect with water (like health, farming, housing, planning, etc.) please submit your information to us!
Are you a current member?
Update your color of water profile.
Can’t access your email? Get in touch with us!
Are you a journalist?
Download the directory and opt-in to get pitches featuring Color of Water stories.
What are Color of Water members talking about?

How Climate Change Puts the Safety of Drinking Water at Risk – Yale E360
Wildfires, floods, intense heat, droughts, and other extreme events fueled by climate change are threatening water systems in the U.S. and around the globe. Experts warn of the increasing threat of contamination and the need to improve infrastructure to keep drinking water safe. [from Yale E360]

National Park Service withdraws Black community in Louisiana from historic landmark consideration – AP News
A Louisiana landscape where centuries-old sugar cane plantations and Afro-Creole culture remain preserved along the Mississippi River will no longer be eligible for consideration for

Black Owners Reclaim Woodland Plantation’s History of Rebellion – Black Hot Fire Network
ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH, La. — Growing up, Dayna James never thought she’d willingly step foot on a plantation, let alone thank God for

St. John the Baptist Parish site excluded from historic landmark designation, as Louisiana officials commend Trump – L'Observateur – L'Observateur
The NPS excluded an 11-mile stretch of the Mississippi River's west bank in St. John the Baptist Parish as a National Historic Landmark, NHL [from

An EPA Rule Will Reduce Lead in Drinking Water—Unless This Effort to Block It Succeeds – Inside Climate News – Inside Climate News
Reversing the rule could have disastrous implications for public health. Experts and advocates are pushing back. [from Inside Climate News]

The water unexpectedly released from dams on Trump’s order didn’t help farms or L.A. – The Columbian
LOS ANGELES — Days after President Trump startled some of his most ardent supporters in California’s San Joaquin Valley by having the Army Corps of