"The Song of Grandmother Cricket" and the Bolivian people's struggle for water rights

Friends, 

Check out this amazing short video that is great for the Ethnic Studies, especially Native American Studies, classroom sent to me compliments of Indigenous elder and teacher Dr. Carlos Aceves titled, "The Song of Grandmother Cricket." Here's the published description:

This beautiful animated short film, inspired by a myth from the Bolivian lowlands, was created by a group of Bolivian animators in collaboration with The Animation Workshop of Denmark. When Abuela Grillo (Grandmother Cricket) sings, it rains, and in a country marked by water shortages, the film is a response to the privatization of Bolivia’s water resources by foreign corporations. The Cochabamba water wars of 2000 was a series of massive protests by the indigenous community to retain access to their water supply, which eventually pressured the government to revoke the international contract. Voiced by Bolivian singer Luzmila Carpio, traditional Quechua singing weaves indigenous melody throughout the film, further illuminating the cultural roots of this fight for the universal right to pure water.

Referencing the struggle over water rights, the film poignantly illustrates the immorality of privatizing water.  Along these lines, I also encourage you to see a movie featuring Gael García Bernal titled, "Aún la lluvia," ("Even the Rain"). Here's the trailer. You can even view this very impactful film in English or Spanish.

As a global community, time really is of the essence. We must liberate water from corporate ownership everywhere.

-Angela Valenzuela

@algore #TxEd #climatechange #ClimateAction #ClimateDenial #InconvenientTruth #WaterIsAHumanRight #Bolivia 

@EnvironmentTex @SierraClub @TexasSierraClub @TXWaterFuture #OneWaterTexas #SustainabilityTexas #SomosMAS @Bolivia #southamerica  

California Latin@ Water Summit Resolution: Pls Endorse Resolution

Powerful resolution.  Water is life. This is and should be a top issue in California.  Folks can click HERE to endorse this resolution.
Angela

 
Mindful of the fact that Latin@s as California's emerging majority need to play a prominent role in California's water policy debates, the California Latin@ Water Summit of 2016 gathered on December 9, 2016 at the La Kretz Innovation Campus and developed the following resolution.  As Latin@ leaders we endorse this resolution and urge your approval as well.

Endorsed By:
Ivan Enriquez, Santa Ana
Antonio González, William C. Velásquez Institute, Los Angeles
Jose Gonzalez, LatinoCare, South Gate
Howard Hernandez, 1st Vice Commander California State American GI Forum, Montebello
Nativo Lopez, Hermandad Mexicana, Los Angeles
Ellen Lubic, Joining Forces for Education, Los Angeles
Raul Macias, Anahuak Youth Soccer Association
Jesse Marez, Los Angeles
Alfredo Nuño, Planning Commissioner, City of El Monte
Mayor Sam Pedroza, City of Claremont
Richard Ramirez, Fullerton
Maria Riojas, Los Angeles
Carson Mayor Albert Robles, Director, Water Replenishment District of Southern California, Lakewood
David Rodriguez, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Camarillo
Javier Rodriguez, Director, ZAZ Communications, Los Angeles
Jorge H. Rodriguez, Rodriguez Group, Pasadena
Angela Sanbrano, Mexican Network of Migrant Leaders and Organizations, La Verne
Jose Solorio, Assembly Member Emeritus
Maria Elena Yepes, Monterey Park


Whereas persistent climate change has altered the way Californians must approach water management;

Whereas California is in the fifth year of its worst drought on record;

Whereas in September 2016 100% percent of California was in drought with 62.27 % in severe drought;

Whereas climate scientists are predicting a decades-long drought for California, especially southern California;

Whereas Southern California is dependent on imported water deliveries from the Sierra Snowpack and the Colorado River, two increasingly unreliable and contested sources;

Whereas the Sierra Snowpack, was the lowest ever recorded in 2015;

Whereas about two thirds of all Californians and millions of acres of irrigated farmland rely on Bay Delta water;

Whereas Bay Delta water is increasingly contested by environmental, farming and urban needs;

Whereas the Colorado River provides water to over 40 million people in multiple states and Mexico including 15 Native American tribes, is used to irrigate nearly 4 million acres, supplies water to 7 National Wildlife Refuges, 4 National Recreation Areas, and 11 National Parks;

Whereas the Colorado River is the most contested river in the Country and is at its lowest deliveries in history;

Whereas the California drought has caused the death of 100 million trees since 2012;
Whereas California's population is expected to grow to 50 million by 2049, a near-majority (48%) of whom will be Latin@;

Whereas nothing is more important to the Latino community than clean safe drinking water;

Whereas for the millions of Latinos living in California securing water supply is a matter of environmental justice, human, and civil rights;

Whereas Latino voices have not been paramount in the California dialogue over how best to ensure adequate water supplies for all Californians even though when asked in surveys demonstrate substantial concern about drought issues and support for conservation and developing diverse new sources of water;

Whereas California is in the process of developing polices, rules and regulations on how to create new local water for communities throughout the state;

Whereas Governor Brown's California Water Action Plan calls for regional water supply self-reliance through the development of new drinking water supplies including waste water recycling, storm water capture and desalination;

Whereas in responding to the drought, communities throughout California have institutionalized such conservation & efficiency measures as: installing water conservation appliances, using drip irrigation, watering lawns in early morning or after sunset, landscaping with drought proof plants, washing with full loads, using a broom instead of water to clean sidewalks and driveways;

Whereas water districts throughout California are recycling wastewater as a source of new local water;

Whereas desalination is the only drought-proof source of new local water not dependent on rain or snow-pack and seawater and brackish groundwater desalination plants now exist or are being planned in 36 California jurisdictions, and water produced by new desalination plants are increasingly cost competitive;

Whereas California jurisdictions are moving away from simply diverting stormwater to capturing and purifying the water;

Whereas protecting California's public and economy from the devastating effects of long term drought will require substantial public and private investment that if done improperly could lead to inequitable access due to high water costs;

1. Therefore, be it resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit supports an "all-of-the-above" strategy for drought resiliency that develops conservation & efficiency, wastewater recycling & recharge; stormwater capture; and both seawater and brackish water desalination;

2. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit supports   policies that lead to a near future of non-dependence in Southern California on expensive and increasingly unreliable imported water from Northern California and the Colorado River;

3. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit supports policies that restore adequate access to clean and reliable water for residents and agriculture in the Central Valley of California;

4. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit supports policies that stabilize and restore the Salton Sea, whose decimation comprises a danger to regional air quality and public health;

5. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit supports policies such as the California WaterFix that would upgrade the 50-year-old infrastructure in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to protect this major source of clean water for two thirds of the state, and programs to restore the habitat and ecosystem in and around the Delta;

6. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit calls for the legislature and the 2018 state water bond to invest tens of billions of public dollars in multi-benefit projects that guarantees reliable quality water supplies that enable quality of life and economic development consistent with the best traditions of California society, especially now that California is an emerging Latino majority society;

7. Be it further resolved that the California Latin@ Water Summit calls for California's regulatory and water agencies to balance and calibrate the costs of water production, so that economic inequality does not manifest itself in substantially greater access to water for the comparatively affluent.