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

Day laborers face hardships in the aftermath of Altadena fire, study reveals – CaloNews.com
A new report shows that many day laborers who worked in debris cleanup and recovery after the January 2025 wildfire in Altadena often worked through

American data centers in just seven states are reportedly using more water than all the cities in California – TechRadar
Data centers in seven states consume 10.4 million acre-feet of water [from TechRadar]

The Great Mayfly Swarms of Lake Erie – National Parks Conservation Association
Summer mayflies along Lake Erie’s coastline may be nasty and annoying, but they share glad tidings about environmental recovery. NPCA played a role. [from National