Basic Needs and Struggles
Equity and Sustainability in U.S.-Mexican Border Water Policy: A Look at the California-Baja California Case
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Kimberly Collins
Access to good quality water is agreed upon across the globe as a basic human right. Water is managed along the U.S.-Mexican border, a natural desert region, by a couple of large national institutions, respective states, and local water districts, with strong self-interests. This limits who has access and how allocations are made. In many cases, it can be seen that individuals and the environment suffer as they take a back seat to larger, organized interests. This is due in part to the conflicting goals of national, state, and local institutions, and political/economic actors that function in their own self-interest based in the fundamental principles of sovereignty held by their respective nation-states. Therefore, it can be argued that real equity does not exist for the people living in the region as there is not a governing institution that represents the interests of all of the people. Without equity, it is difficult to obtain sustainability as actors compete for a limited resource. The hypothesis of this study is that sovereignty and self-interest governance models in Mexico and the United States have limited social equity in the management of water. This hypothesis is tested through a model analyzing the main federal, state, and local water governance institutions in the California-Baja California border region, based on the following factors: agency descriptions; institutional visions and mission statements; grant process/funding; government programs and services; cross border work/projects; local networks with private, public, and community members’ access; and laws, rules, regulations, and governance.
An Assessment of Water Access Opportunities for a Rural Farming Community in Ecuador
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Cristian Casanova
In partnership with a community organization, Nido De Vida, we assessed the water access needs and built a physical map as a prototype to recommend ways to improve water access for the Bolivarense community in Ecuador. The team, using deep dive method, conducted initial interviews with community members from 17 households within a 3 mile radius. Out of 17 households, only six felt secured about the amount of water they have access to during the dry season, but those that do have significant water storage, while all households get their water from creeks which run low in the dry season. Lastly, all of the 17 household saw cost as a barrier to improving their water systems; some explained that they would like to buy storage tanks or electric pumps, but could not afford them. The team, in cooperation with Nido de Vida, employed a range of needs filtering methods in order to set aside some challenges and prioritize the others. After prioritizing and filtering the challenges, most of the high priority challenges centered around ensuring water access for all community members, environmental conservation, education, and community building. Focusing on the challenge of environmental conservation, we created and presented a 3-mile radius physical map to the community, displaying geographic locations of water sources used by various families and locations of homes of the community. This assessment and geographical map has demonstrated that it is possible to apply these deliverables for potential development projects to improve water access for this community.
