FINAL- WLI Zine 2025 (1) - Flipbook - Page 3
Introduction
(note from the editors )
This zine is a compilation of artistic reflections on the question:
What is my relationship to water?
The central question guiding a community of 38 individuals from the US/Mexico
borderlands, Arizona Southwest, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, and Tohono O’odham Nation who
convened for 2025’s Water Leadership Institute (WLI) in Southern Arizona. These
spirited, creative, and thoughtful water leaders explored the complexities of water in
the Sonoran Desert, visiting the Santa Cruz River Heritage Site, the Wa:k Hikdan
Restoration Site, Patagonia Lake, and Nogales, Arizona.
WLI participants shared their experiences, heard perspectives from local water
leaders, reflected on innate connections to water, and discussed our histories and
systems that impact water access, sanitation, and hygiene. We evaluated policy and
how decisions can impact people, the community, and the environment. Participants
also reflected on their leadership journeys, identifying their strengths, passions, and
the value of lived experience.
As you look through this zine think about
your own relationship to water.
What or who shapes your perspectives?
What would you like to share with others?
What would you like to learn from others?
How has water shaped your life?
Editors:
Kait Bieber, Environmental Defense Fund, Climate Resilient Water Systems
Nieves Vázquez, Water For People, US WASH Program
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