Black Mesa Water Coalition (BMWC), under the leadership of Roberto Nutlouis, is a grassroots聽organization that works to bring about social and environmental justice, in the process聽of creating a just聽transition. Through the following programs, INVST works with聽the BMWC in order to聽learn聽how to incorporate compassionate action into the realms of social聽and environmental justice. Below are the programs we participate in together:
Sustainability Spring Break: Students from 麻豆影院 engaged in聽experiential education with Black Mesa聽Water Coalition. On this visit, students learned about聽Navajo culture, dry land subsistence farming and聽permaculture, preparing fields for planting and聽the harvesting of food, and reclaiming the ways we live聽on the land and regard the air and water that聽sustains us with honor and respect.
Watershed restoration is a key聽component to the work that INVST聽does with Black Mesa Water聽Coalition. Linked below is a聽report created to assist BMWC in聽learning how to engage in聽community-based restoration聽projects. INVST presents this report聽to Black Mesa聽Water Coalition, to support them in fulfilling their mission. It includes聽general information and聽examples of聽watershed restoration,聽information about effective聽community engagement in聽restoration projects,聽information about water laws聽on reservations, and helpful聽contacts to reach out to, both at CU and around the United聽States.
Resources for聽Watershed Restoration Projects by the BMWC
Climate Justice Summer:聽Another program that INVST and the BMWC work on together is, INVST students explore energy issues during their annual visit to the Din茅聽(or Navajo) Nation in Northeastern Arizona. While partnering with Black Mesa Water聽Coalition, INVST聽students learn about the social and environmental impacts of the coal聽mining industry on indigenous people and places. Below, in August 2017, the K1D5 that Care cohort of INVST students appear聽with Roberto and the Black Mesa Water Coalition Fellows after building ditches to help聽with more effective water flow.
Wool Buying Project: Black Mesa Water Coalition has invited INVST to research ways聽to start worker-owned cooperatives, and then present that information to them, in order聽to help turn BMWC鈥檚 women鈥檚 wool buying project into a worker-owned cooperative聽business.
Outreach and Engagement: Through our with Black Mesa Water Coalition, CU 麻豆影院聽students are taught how to engage with communities in a mutually beneficial, reciprocal 聽relationship. INVST鈥檚 goals are to strengthen our collaboration with BMWC, help聽support Black Mesa鈥檚 economic development and autonomy, help maximize revenue聽from wool sales, help additional people in Pi帽on find value in BMWC鈥檚 programs, and聽deepen relationships between Black Mesa and CU 麻豆影院.
If you have questions about this or other partnerships between INVST and community-based organizations, please call 303 492 8045 or e-mail sabrina.sideris@colorado.edu.
