The third cohort of the Water Solutions Network, representing the Lower Colorado River Basin and Lower Klamath River Basins, launched in May. The Coro team, in partnership with DIG IN and Celeste Cantú, adapted and delivered the curriculum virtually.
The Water Solutions Network supports leaders committed to solving California’s most pressing water management challenges, engaging them in developing the skills, knowledge, and networks to support collaboration and coalition-building. We work with leaders who have the courage to take bold action to shift water management to system based, multi-purpose policies that support a more resilient and equitable future for California.
To launch, our newest cohort members got to know each other and our team. We reviewed our Outcomes, Agenda, Roles and Responsibilities/Community Agreements, and Celeste led a conversation about Integrated Water Resource Management in the 21st Century.
In June, Advisory Council Member Buzz Thompson, Robert E. Paradise Professor of Natural Resources Law at Stanford Law School, led a discussion about tribal water rights. Advisory Council Member Pete Silva, President of Silva-Silva International, discussed the value of collaboration in international management of the Colorado River with Mexico.
In addition to discussions about the issues, challenges, and opportunities in both river basins, the cohort learned new skills to facilitate critical thinking and observation, including Coro’s DKDK (don’t know what you don’t know) tool. They discussed how to apply these skills in their varied roles in the Lower Klamath River and the Colorado River Basin.
Cohort members are fully engaged in the learnings. As one member wrote in an early post-session evaluation, “I’m looking forward to learning from my fellow cohort members and understanding their viewpoints, particularly about my region and agricultural water use …. I would like to see where we are falling short of moving towards water resilience in California, and then work with the group to challenge assumptions … further efforts and collaboration could bring great change toward more sustainable water management.”
Interested in learning more about this vital issue? Check out the links below. And stay tuned for more updates as we continue to collaborate to support this network of water leaders.
Special thanks: This cohort is supported by grants from the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation.
Additional water resources:
- Leading Culture and Systems Change
- California’s Future: Water
- California’s Climate Change and Water
- Reconnecting the Klamath
- Dam Removal moves forward on the Klamath – A conversation with Lester Snow, Board President of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation and WSN Advisory Council Member from June 2019.
- Working with California Tribes on upper watershed Restoration.
- New Water Official Views Salton Sea Priorities – A conversation with Joaquin Esquivel, Chair Ca State Water Board
- Planning for a dryer future in the Colorado River Basin.
- Water for Farms
- California Water Myths – While this was written with California in mind, it is applicable to the West in general.
As Coro’s Program Manager, Angela Pang works with the program team to deliver innovative leadership development programs, including Water Solutions Network and Women in Leadership. She also serves as Co-Chair of the Asian Pacific American Heritage Celebration Committee, which organizes San Francisco’s official celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month each May.
