Water Leadership Institute reunion: Bridging connections over water

During a rainy Saturday in Visalia, graduates from the Water Leadership Institute (WLI) gathered for an alumni reunion. It only seemed fitting that alumni congregated to discuss solutions to water challenges in an area that historically suffered from drought and recently suffered from severe flooding.

Co-hosted by the Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC), Self-Help Enterprises (SHE), and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the gathering was meant to foster a support network for community water leaders and influence the future of the WLI. The alumni reunion also included local organizations that work to engage communities to promote equity and water resilience, including the Community Water Center (CWC), Watershed Progressive, and Linguistica Interpreting and Translation.Through various activities and conversations, alumni stressed the importance of collaboration in their work and the value of the group’s diversity. They discussed creating solutions to the most pressing water challenges, such as groundwater contamination and depletion, as well as the urgency to build resilience to both droughts and flooding. Many WLI alumni shared that solutions had to involve the communities on the front lines, those first impacted by water challenges. Work must focus on engaging and investing in those communities to empower them to work alongside water experts.