Color Of Water
Elevating Indigenous, Black, Latinx, and other voices of color to change the narrative around water.
Sonali Abraham
Pacific Institute
Heather Tanana
University of Denver Sturm College of Law
Oluwole (OJ) McFoy
Houston Public Works
Harshini Ratnayaka
Save the Dunes
Talia London
The Common Acre
Dezaraye Bagalayos
Allensworth Progressive Association
Jose Luis Ortiz y Muniz
Greenroots Institute
Angela Guyadeen
NRDC
Vinicius Taguchi
North Carolina State University
Rachele Lopez
Justice Outside
Damian Shapes Padilla
Spirit Rock Consulting
Nasim Pica
WSP in the U.S.
Tanasia Swift
Billion Oyster Project
Felice Green
Milwaukee Water Commons
Sidney Opiyo
University of California, Santa Cruz
Carolan Sonderegger
For Love of Water
Paula Buchanan
National Center for Domestic Preparedness (NCDP), Columbia Climate School
Usman Mahmood
Bayou City Waterkeeper
Jazmin Ricks
University of Pennsylvania
Maisah Khan
Regenerative Agriculture Foundation
Cate Caldwell
Illinois Environmental Council
Jahan Taganova
City and County of Denver
Ean Tafoya
GreenLatinos
Cathie Chavez-Morris
Equidad Group
Ashwin Dhanasekar
Brown and Caldwell
Val Schull
GreenLatinos
Guadalupe Fernandez
Bayou City Waterkeeper
Mallika Nocco
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš
Azul
Ayako Tischler
Xylem
Direlle Calica
Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI)
Chriscilia Cox
SUMA Consulting LLC
André Sanchez
California Wilderness Coalition
Lucero Sanchez
San Diego Coastkeeper
Kedar Dabhadkar
Lam Research
Sapna Mulki
Environmental Policy Innovation Center
Sanjiv Sinha
Corvias Infrastructure Solutions, LLC.
Oday Salim
University of Michigan Law School
Marc Oliver Quijano
Jacobs
Mahtaab Bagherzadeh
NWF/Clean Water for All
Sarah Traore
The University of Texas at Austin
Arsum Pathak
National Wildlife Federation
Pita Juarez
Comms Consultant
Julian Gonzalez
Earthjustice
Breanna Gonzalez
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Bridget Ray
Washington State Department of Commerce
Walt Walker
TYLin
Monica Driggers
Massachusetts Rivers Alliance
Crystal Davis
National Parks Conservation Association
Daniela Sherrill
ASU / AZ Water for All
Temiloluwa Akinyemi
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Jasmine Walker
Ohio Environmental Council
Cyatharine Alias
Center for Neighborhood Technology
Benu Amun Ra
S.A.C.R.Ed Eco-Center
Bleu Adams
IndigeHub
Angela Mooney D’Arcy
Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples
Fernando Ramirez
Bridges 2023 International
Charming Evelyn
OceanWell Water
Joy Banner
The Descendants Project
Esteban Ortiz
The Gorge Association of Aspirations/La Asociacion de Aspiraciones del Gorge
José M. Rodríguez-Flores
California State University, Monterey Bay
Pablo Ortiz
Union of Concerned Scientists
Tiffany Sevilla
Greenprint Partners
Nikki Tulley
University of Arizona
Briana Muñoz
Pacific Coast Carbon LLC
Adriana Renteria
State Water Board
Rob Larson
Grand Valley State University
Arohi Sharma
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Pallavi Bharadwaj
SEG
Keiko Wilkins
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Newsha Ajami
Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability
Andrian Lee
BCM Environmental and Land Law, PLLC
Carlos Moran
Northeast Trees
Nathaniel I Kollie
University of California Santa Cruz
Analise Rivero
California Trout
Andrea León-Grossmann
Vote Solar
Angela M Chalk
Healthy Community Resources Services
Moisés Moreno-Rivera
Trust for Public Land
Kimbaya Carriere
Nuxalk First Nation
Afia Zakiya
Independent Africana Studies and EJ scholar-activist, currently Executive Director of Africatown Heritage Preservation Foundation
Sri Vedachalam
Cisolutions
Cate Mingoya-LaFortune
Groundwork USA
Pedro Hernandez
GreenLatinos
Brenda Coley
Milwaukee Water Commons
Quentin Stubbs
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Aria Harris
TYLin
Martin Griffin
Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District
Huda Alkaff
Wisconsin Green Muslims
Emma Robbins
The Chapter House
Nahal G. Ipakchi
BluePoint Planning
Ngodoo Atume
UC Agriculture and Natural Resources
Dira Johanif
Charles River Climate Compact
Alai Reyes-Santos
Alaí Community Consulting
Jahan Taganova
City and County of Denver
Jessica Thrasher
Colorado State University
Rhysea Agrawal
The Xylom
Bre’Shaun Reddick
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Alex Ortiz
Austin Water and Wastewater Commission
Jaiden Willeto
Northern Arizona University / K'é Infoshop
Nadine Robertson
Veolia North America
Nicole Nelson
Equity Legal Services, Inc
Danielle Rivera
University of California Berkeley
Olga Morales
Rural Community Assistance Partnership Incorporated
Marccus Hendricks
University of Maryland - College Park
Elizabeth Ruiz
CA State Water Resources Control Board
Charles Cassagnol
Western Ecology, LLC
Patricia Lindsay-Harvey
Willingboro Municipal Utilities Authority
Alyssa Senturk
California Water Data Consortium
Carlos Calderon
West Michigan Environmental Action Council
Billie Li
Wright-Pierce
Wendy “Poppy” Ferris-George
Ferris Institute
Nicole Chavas
Greenprint Partners
Priscila Alves
University of Maryland
Kabir Thatte
The Vessel Collective
Portia Shepherd
Blackbelt Women Rising
Alondra Hernandez-Bose
WEAT
Sandi Matsumoto
The Nature Conservancy
Shama Perveen
Ceres
Rhea Drozdenko
Connecticut River Conservancy
Jeremy Orr
Earthjustice
Khalid Osman
Stanford University
Susana De Anda
Community Water Center
Vicky Espinoza
CaliWaterAg
Allen Townsend
World Wildlife Fund
Sydney Garcia
The Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation
Nusrat Molla
Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University
Roland Jones
CIS
Nureen Faiza Anisha
Oregon State University
Ani Jayakaran
Washington State University
Angel Santiago Fernandez-Bou
Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)
Cheyenne Holliday
Verde
Tanner Yess
Groundwork USA
Ehab Meselhe
Tulane University
Diana Piña Yitbarek
NC Department of Environmental Quality
Julia Fay Bernal
Pueblo Action Alliance
Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud
Bayou City Waterkeeper
Shandin Pete
University of British Columbia
Ed Marin
Louisville Water
Lenise Marrero
Brown and Caldwell
Nieves Vazquez
Water For People
Maria Elena Kennedy
Kennedy Communications, Inc
Chakena Sims
NRDC
Daniel Cordalis
Native American Rights Fund
Thea Louis
MSC Industrial Supply Co.
Tony Bridges
The Maryland General Assembly
Jessica Dandridge-Smith
The Water Collaborative
Crystal Sanders-Alvarado
Seaworthy
Maritza Mendoza
Empower DC
Cindy Donis
East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice
Chakena Sims
NRDC
Gia Moreno
Hood Community Council
Xochitl Bervera
Near Futures Projects/Water is Life Oysters
Jo Banner
The Descendants Project
Chauncey Foster
we.grow.eco
Rene Henery
Trout Unlimited/ University of Nevada, Reno
Michael Méndez
UC Irvine
Beth Roach
Sierra Club
Victor Galvan
Denver Mayor's Office for Climate Action, Sustainability and Resilience
Emily Warren Armitano
Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation
Olga Cano
HUD
Veronica Garibay
Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability
Silvia R. Gonzalez
UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute
Jacob Bernal
American Rivers
Nataly Escobedo Garcia
Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability
Mariana Del Valle Prieto Cervantes
GreenLatinos
Ciara Horne
SBG Digital
Parsa Saffarinia
University of California, Davis
Cheyanne Harris
Brown and Caldwell
Alastair Bitsóí
Near the Water Media & Communications Group
Ruthie Redmond
UC Berkeley
Frank Ruiz
The Office of U.S. Representative Raul Ruiz
John Echohawk
Native American Rights Fund
Joaquin Esquivel
California State Water Resources Control Board
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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 importance of equity 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!
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What are Color of Water members talking about?

California’s push to limit groundwater pumping could leave small farmers in the dust – Los Angeles Times
According to a new report, California groundwater regulations threaten to put many small farms out of business. [from Los Angeles Times]

A simple idea to bring clean drinking water to U.S. homes at a lower cost – Sustainability Accelerator
[from Sustainability Accelerator]

New federal law could bring running water to tribal homes, but states have concerns – NPR
More than 10,000 homes on Southwestern Indian reservations lack running water. This despite tribes substantial water rights. A new solution is being held up as