Color Of Water

Elevating Indigenous, Black, Latinx, and other voices of color to change the narrative around water.

Chakena Sims

NRDC

Jacob Bernal

American Rivers

Pablo Ortiz

Union of Concerned Scientists

Ehab Meselhe

Tulane University

Cate Mingoya-LaFortune

Groundwork USA

Carlos Moran

Northeast Trees

Vinicius Taguchi

North Carolina State University

Tanasia Swift

Billion Oyster Project

Alai Reyes-Santos

University of Oregon

Pallavi Bharadwaj

SEG

Maria Elena Kennedy

Kennedy Communications, Inc

Daniela Sherrill

ASU / AZ Water for All

Paula Buchanan

National Center for Domestic Preparedness (NCDP), Columbia Climate School

Ngodoo Atume

UC Agriculture and Natural Resources

Ayako Tischler

Xylem

Marc Oliver Quijano

Jacobs

Talia London

The Common Acre

Charming Evelyn

OceanWell Water

Dira Johanif

Charles River Climate Compact

Andrea León-Grossmann

Vote Solar

Michael Méndez

UC Irvine

John Echohawk

Native American Rights Fund

Angela M Chalk

Healthy Community Resources Services

Marccus Hendricks

University of Maryland - College Park

Ean Tafoya

GreenLatinos

Rene Henery

Trout Unlimited/ University of Nevada, Reno

Kedar Dabhadkar

Lam Research

Nikki Tulley

University of Arizona

Sandi Matsumoto

The Nature Conservancy

Mahtaab Bagherzadeh

NWF/Clean Water for All

Joy Banner

The Descendants Project

Aria Harris

TYLin

Cyatharine Alias

Center for Neighborhood Technology

Crystal Sanders-Alvarado

Seaworthy

Fernando Ramirez

Bridges 2023 International

Nicole Nelson

Equity Legal Services, Inc

Carlos Calderon

West Michigan Environmental Action Council

Victor Galvan

Denver Mayor's Office for Climate Action, Sustainability and Resilience

Parsa Saffarinia

University of California, Davis

Alyssa Senturk

California Water Data Consortium

Arohi Sharma

Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)

Frank Ruiz

The Office of U.S. Representative Raul Ruiz

Rob Larson

Grand Valley State University

Benu Amun Ra

S.A.C.R.Ed Eco-Center

Angel Santiago Fernandez-Bou

Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)

Shama Perveen

Ceres

Xochitl Bervera

Near Futures Projects/Water is Life Oysters

Ani Jayakaran

Washington State University

Cindy Donis

East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice

Bleu Adams

IndigeHub

Nureen Faiza Anisha

Oregon State University

Damian Shapes Padilla

Spirit Rock Consulting

Nathaniel I Kollie

University of California Santa Cruz

Nadine Robertson

Veolia North America

Maisah Khan

Regenerative Agriculture Foundation

Adriana Renteria

State Water Board

Sapna Mulki

Environmental Policy Innovation Center

Crystal Davis

National Parks Conservation Association

Vicky Espinoza

CaliWaterAg

Rhysea Agrawal

The Xylom

Oluwole (OJ) McFoy

Houston Public Works

Veronica Garibay

Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability

Chakena Sims

NRDC

Elizabeth Ruiz

CA State Water Resources Control Board

Arsum Pathak

National Wildlife Federation

Quentin Stubbs

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Monica Driggers

Massachusetts Rivers Alliance

Jo Banner

The Descendants Project

Walt Walker

TYLin

Jahan Taganova

City and County of Denver

Keiko Wilkins

University of Hawaii at Manoa

Tanner Yess

Groundwork USA

Shandin Pete

University of British Columbia

Sri Vedachalam

Cisolutions

Felice Green

Milwaukee Water Commons

Jessica Thrasher

Colorado State University

Portia Shepherd

Blackbelt Women Rising

Ciara Horne

SBG Digital

Chauncey Foster

we.grow.eco

Nataly Escobedo Garcia

Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability

Bridget Ray

Washington State Department of Commerce

Bre’Shaun Reddick

Alliance for the Great Lakes

Allen Townsend

World Wildlife Fund

Brenda Coley

Milwaukee Water Commons

Nusrat Molla

Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University

Patricia Lindsay-Harvey

Willingboro Municipal Utilities Authority

Ashwin Dhanasekar

Brown and Caldwell

Jose Luis Ortiz y Muniz

Greenroots Institute

Alastair Bitsóí

Navajo Nation Office of the President and Vice President

Julia Fay Bernal

Pueblo Action Alliance

Angela Guyadeen

NRDC

Sanjiv Sinha

Corvias Infrastructure Solutions, LLC.

Daniel Cordalis

Native American Rights Fund

Lenise Marrero

Brown and Caldwell

Joaquin Esquivel

California State Water Resources Control Board

Mariana Del Valle Prieto Cervantes

GreenLatinos

Oday Salim

University of Michigan Law School

André Sanchez

California Wilderness Coalition

Harshini Ratnayaka

Save the Dunes

Andrian Lee

BCM Environmental and Land Law, PLLC

Susana De Anda

Community Water Center

Nieves Vazquez

Water For People

Gabe Vasquez

US Congress

Emma Robbins

The Chapter House

Olga Morales Pate

Rural Community Assistance Partnership Incorporated

Pedro Hernandez

GreenLatinos

Val Schull

GreenLatinos

Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud

Bayou City Waterkeeper

Dezaraye Bagalayos

Allensworth Progressive Association

Sonali Abraham

Pacific Institute

Alex Ortiz

Austin Water and Wastewater Commission

Diana Piña Yitbarek

NC Department of Environmental Quality

Newsha Ajami

Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability

Ruthie Redmond

UC Berkeley

Jaiden Willeto

Northern Arizona University / K'é Infoshop

Direlle Calica

Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI)

Tony Bridges

The Maryland General Assembly

Thea Louis

MSC Industrial Supply Co.

Khalid Osman

Stanford University

Billie Li

Wright-Pierce

Sarah Traore

The University of Texas at Austin

Usman Mahmood

Bayou City Waterkeeper

Olga Cano

HUD

Cate Caldwell

Illinois Environmental Council

Ed Marin

Louisville Water

Huda Alkaff

Wisconsin Green Muslims

Cathie Chavez-Morris

Equidad Group

Priscila Alves

University of Maryland

Gia Moreno

Hood Community Council

Chriscilia Cox

SUMA Consulting LLC

Esteban Ortiz

The Gorge Association of Aspirations/La Asociacion de Aspiraciones del Gorge

Breanna Gonzalez

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment

Rhea Drozdenko

Connecticut River Conservancy

Briana Muñoz

Pacific Coast Carbon LLC

Cheyanne Harris

Brown and Caldwell

Afia Zakiya

Independent Africana Studies and EJ scholar-activist, currently Executive Director of Africatown Heritage Preservation Foundation

Nahal G. Ipakchi

BluePoint Planning

Charles Cassagnol

Western Ecology, LLC

Sydney Garcia

The Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation

Danielle Rivera

University of California Berkeley

Jahan Taganova

City and County of Denver

Julian Gonzalez

Earthjustice

Analise Rivero

California Trout

Silvia R. Gonzalez

UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute

José M. Rodríguez-Flores

California State University, Monterey Bay

Cheyenne Holliday

Verde

Heather Tanana

University of Denver Sturm College of Law

Sidney Opiyo

University of California, Santa Cruz

Alondra Hernandez-Bose

WEAT

Roland Jones

CIS

Jeremy Orr

Earthjustice

Lucero Sanchez

San Diego Coastkeeper

Angela Mooney D’Arcy

Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples

Jessica Dandridge-Smith

The Water Collaborative

Martin Griffin

Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District

Jazmin Ricks

University of Pennsylvania

Emily Warren Armitano

Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation

Rachele Lopez

Justice Outside

Nasim Pica

WSP in the U.S.

Mallika Nocco

University of Wisconsin–Madison

Pita Juarez

Comms Consultant

Wendy “Poppy” Ferris-George

Ferris Institute

Kimbaya Carriere

Nuxalk First Nation

Temiloluwa Akinyemi

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Kabir Thatte

The Vessel Collective

Carolan Sonderegger

For Love of Water

Tiffany Sevilla

Greenprint Partners

Nicole Chavas

Greenprint Partners

Alyssa Senturk

California Water Data Consortium

Beth Roach

Sierra Club

Jasmine Walker

Ohio Environmental Council

Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš

Azul

Maritza Mendoza

Empower DC

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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.

explore the Color of Water directory

experts across the country

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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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