Listen Again: Our Relationship With Water

Podcast Summary

• The Importance of Water to Indigenous Communities: Recognizing water as a life-giving resource rather than a commodity and restoring every person's connection to it is crucial for addressing water pollution and access issues. Ignoring water's importance can lead to severe consequences, including water insecurity and related health and social issues for indigenous communities.

  Our connection to water is crucial for our existence and identity, particularly for indigenous communities. However, many people have lost this connection and view water as a commodity rather than a life-giving resource. This disconnection has led to water pollution and access issues for millions of people around the world. To address this, we need to work towards restoring every person's connection to water and recognizing its finite nature. The consequences of ignoring water's importance are severe, with many communities, including Native Americans in the US, facing water insecurity and related health and social issues. The TED Radio Hour interview with Kelsey Leonard emphasizes the significance of water to indigenous peoples and the need to protect it for future generations.

• Respecting Water: A Precious Relationship: Recognize water as a fundamental human right, protect it, and value its importance for future generations.

  Our relationship with water is precious and must be respected. Kelsey Leonard's story of her grandmother's prophecy serves as a reminder of the potential value of water in the future. The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, serves as a stark reminder of what can happen when that relationship is neglected. The people of Flint have faced serious health consequences due to contaminated water, and the ongoing struggle highlights the importance of recognizing water as a fundamental right. Latoya's documentation of Shay and her family's daily life in Flint illustrates the challenges of living without easy access to clean water. The takeaway is that we must value water, protect it, and ensure that everyone has access to it as a basic human right.

• The Water Crisis in Flint and Its Impact on Families: The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, has significantly affected families like Shea and Zion, reminding us of the urgent need for clean water and the consequences of neglecting it.

  The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, is a persistent issue that has significantly impacted the daily lives of its residents, particularly for families like Shea and Zion. Latoya Ruby Frazier's documentation of their experiences heightened her awareness of water and its importance, making her more conscious of her own water usage. Growing up in a town with contaminated water herself, Frazier was deeply affected by the crisis in Flint, which brought back traumatic memories of her own childhood. The ongoing water crisis in Flint serves as a reminder of the urgent need for clean water and the environmental and health consequences of neglecting it.

• A girl's personal journey through a water crisis and the role of an artist in amplifying underrepresented voices: Through her art, Toya emphasizes the significance of amplifying underrepresented voices and perspectives in the face of water crises and societal oppression.

  The experience of Zion, an eight-year-old girl navigating a water crisis in her community, is a deeply personal and political issue. Toya, a photographer, documented Zion's story through photographs and audio recordings, creating a human archive for her to reflect upon as she grows up. Toya's approach to her work as an artist differs from journalism, focusing on who gets to author the image and story, and how it can be used to redistribute power and equity. The poem "No Filter" by Shay, which opens the 11-minute video, powerfully expresses the connection between water, oppression, and self-destruction. Through her art, Toya highlights the importance of amplifying underrepresented voices and perspectives.

• Community members' unique connection to their environment: Historically marginalized communities have valuable insights and experiences that can help address environmental challenges. Community-led initiatives and traditional knowledge are essential for effective solutions.

  Community members, particularly those in historically marginalized communities, have a unique connection to their environment and are often best equipped to address the challenges they face. This was highlighted in the discussions with Latoya Ruby Frazier, a visual artist and professor, and Colette Pichon Battle, a climate activist. Both women shared their personal experiences growing up in communities where water played a significant role in their lives. Frazier emphasized the importance of black photographers and poets telling their own stories to counteract the lack of humanity portrayed in mainstream media. Battle, on the other hand, shared her experiences growing up in a bayou community and how traditional knowledge was essential for survival. Both women now dedicate their time to advocating for their communities and ensuring they have a seat at the table in policy conversations surrounding climate change and environmental issues. The lessons from their experiences underscore the importance of community-led initiatives and the power of traditional knowledge in addressing complex issues.

• Hurricane Katrina's Impact on Communities and Climate Change Awareness: Hurricane Katrina highlighted the devastating impact of climate change on communities, particularly those of Black, Native, and poor populations, and the need for climate change awareness and preservation of at-risk areas.

  Climate change poses a significant threat to communities, particularly those in coastal areas, leading to mass displacement and destruction of homes and livelihoods. This was exemplified by Hurricane Katrina, which not only caused devastating damage but also brought to light the loss of barrier islands due to oil and gas drilling and rising sea levels. For Colette, this experience marked a turning point in her career, leading her to advocate for climate change awareness and the preservation of communities at risk. The aftermath of Katrina revealed the stark reality that many communities, especially those of Black, Native, and poor populations, were facing the impossible task of ensuring their survival in the face of climate change. The displacement caused by such disasters disproportionately affects the working class, the elderly, and those with dependents, leaving them in a precarious situation and struggling to return.

• Obama-era FEMA admission: Systems not prepared for climate change impact on vulnerable communities: Acknowledging the need for shared liberation and restructuring systems for collective resilience is crucial to prevent climate gentrification, displacement, and societal upheaval

  Our current structures and systems, including those designed to handle natural disasters and climate migration, are not adequately prepared for the future. This was highlighted during a conversation between Collette Pichon Battle and FEMA during the Obama administration, where the administrator admitted that FEMA regulations were not meant for the most vulnerable communities. As climate change continues to impact communities, leading to displacement and migration, it's crucial that we reframe our understanding of the problem and work towards restructuring our social and economic systems to ensure collective resilience. This includes acknowledging that survival requires a shared liberation and figuring out how to reach it together. The consequences of not doing so could lead to climate gentrification, displacement, and widespread societal upheaval.

• Connecting with Water as a Living Entity: Recognizing water as a living relation is crucial for addressing water crises and injustices. The Sacred Waters pilgrimage brings together Black and Native women to heal relationships with each other and the earth through traditional practices and ceremonies.

  Water is not just a resource to be exploited, but a living entity deserving of respect and legal personhood. The speaker, Colette Pichon Battle, shares her personal journey towards a more spiritual connection with work and the natural world. She also discusses the Sacred Waters pilgrimage, which brings together Black and Native women to heal relationships with each other and the earth through traditional practices and ceremonies. The conversation emphasizes the importance of recognizing water as a living relation and transforming our perspective towards it, as a necessary step towards addressing water crises and injustices.

• Legal personhood for water: Rights for rivers to exist and flourish: Granting legal personhood to water bodies recognizes their inherent rights to exist, flourish, and be protected from harm, creating a more just and climate-resilient world.

  The concept of granting legal personhood to natural entities, such as water, is gaining traction as a solution to address environmental issues and ensure the protection of ecosystems. This idea, rooted in indigenous legal systems and environmental legal theory, grants rights to the water to exist, flourish, and naturally evolve. Legal personhood for water also provides protection from pollutants, climate change impacts, and man-made contamination. Notable examples include the Falunuit River in New Zealand and the Klamath River in California, where legal personhood has been granted and guardians appointed to protect their rights. This shift towards recognizing the rights of nature can help create a more just and climate-just world by restoring indigenous peoples' ability to participate in water governance and protection.

• Recognizing water personhood in Indigenous contexts: Embrace water personhood in Indigenous legal systems to address water conflicts and promote sustainability, while respecting existing treaties and creating collaborative processes for legal reform. Individuals can advocate, learn, and restore connections with water to make a difference.

  Recognizing the legal personhood of water within Indigenous contexts is an innovative approach to addressing contemporary water conflicts and struggles. This concept, rooted in Indigenous legal systems that have operated for centuries, can lead to lasting results for sustainability. However, it's essential to be context-specific and honor existing treaties, as well as create new collaborative processes for legal reform. To make a difference, individuals can take actions such as advocating for water personhood, learning about local Indigenous lands and waters, and restoring personal connections with water. By asking ourselves daily what we have done for the water, we can work towards creating a world where all communities, human and non-human, have access to clean water.