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