“i am the first and only girl in my family which alone creates expectations around me, setting an example for my brothers. i decided to take interest in an area where not a lot of girls are present,” said mwangala maunga, a multi award-winning young scientist, innovator, climate and child rights advocate from lusaka, zambia.

from a young age, mwangala was a book worm, with her readings focused on science and technology. after pondering becoming a medical doctor or an astronaut, she found herself thriving in all of the stem fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). 

clean water for all

driven by the passion to find lasting solutions to the prevailing waterborne diseases rocking most african countries, mwangala, at just 12 years old, came up with an innovative idea to produce a water purifier entirely powered by solar energy. her idea is one that supports the world’s move to more sustainable energy, which in turn plays a key role in helping both developing and developed countries in achieving many of the un’s 2030 sustainable development goals, according to the world bank group. 

she built the water purifier prototype with a combination of wooden and metal sheet enclosures, black paint for insulation, heat absorbent black trays, reflective materials, sheets of glass, glue and catch troughs.

“it is easy to use, as one just needs to put water in it and place it in the sun. however, as science develops, so does my idea,” she said. 

during our interview, mwangala, who is now 16, said she believes her water purifier idea is divine and could not have been timelier, as its conception was closely followed by the declaration of a cholera outbreak in zambia in 2017. cholera is a sometimes fatal infection of the intestines, often caused by drinking contaminated water. mwangala explains that, “the main reason i developed the water filter was because i wanted to provide clean and safe water in the simplest way possible, as opposed to a complicated water purification system.” 

according to mwangala, she nursed the idea for the solar water filter while she was in grade 5, however, she only actualized it when she was in grade 8.

“i remember sitting in a science class and drawing the draft in my exercise book,” she said. “when i showed my friend and asked if she thinks it could actually work, her answer was negative as she said it won’t go anywhere.” a few years down the line, it is evident that mwangala pressed on with her idea. 

using her voice

in an effort to widen the scope of her impact in the lives of other young girls across zambia, she founded the girl power platform, an organization that exists to create stem opportunities for girls especially in rural communities in zambia. 

“i live in the capital city which exposes me to more of these opportunities. what about girls that live in remote areas? i love to see girls thrive because i know for a fact that they have limitless potential,” mwangala said.

through her organization and her innovation, mwangala has been able to address and inspire over 600 girls in her school through stem and climate advocacy activities.

considering the fact that mwangala spends most of her time in school, she reveals she has not had ample time for community outreach. however, she plans to take this on as soon as she completes secondary school this year. “now that i am graduating, it will allow me to have more outreach time to girls in remote areas,” she said.

as she leaves high school this year, her immediate goal is to “complete a book i am working on titled, ‘this far,’ which practically highlights the major events of my life; where i started from and all leading to this point.”

she also plans to engage in mass production of the water filters by early 2023 as the water purifier prototype has gone through the necessary scientific tests and is now at the patenting stage.

her college ambitions are to pursue development studies and engineering. “i intend to reach out to more underprivileged girls in communities and inspire them with my story and educate them on climate change and how they can contribute to making our planet a better place,” she said.

mwangala reveals that she comes from a family that values education and academic achievements. because she is able to access more opportunities, she says, “i am poised to use my voice at every opportunity to educate younger girls, with support from my parents and siblings who have been real cheerleaders in my journey.” 

powered by the sun

her efforts have been crowned with several recognitions, including the best inventor in the science and tech category at the dstv africa multichoice – cartoon network powerpuff girls’ awards; the 2019 youngest recipient of the brenda muntemba award as an “emerging young african leader” at the push women awards; the youngest and only zambian speaker at the 2020 virtual international youth day which featured the youngest deputy minister of information and technology in namibia, hon. emma theofelus; and the youngest stem change maker award at the 2021 genius education zambia awards.

mwangala believes her success is determined by her “ability to do what she loves doing to her heart’s content.” using her gifts to the best of her abilities, she is willing to continue to challenge the status quo in stem by harnessing the power within her in practical ways to bring about positive change in her community and inspire other young girls towards sustainable development.

given that about 418 million people still lack access to even a basic level of drinking water in africa, access to clean water continues to be a permeating development issue. as access to clean, affordable, and safe drinking water is both a fundamental human right recognized by the united nations and goal 6 of the united nations, sustainable development goals, environmental and health benefits are both captured in mwangala’s water purifier innovation.

she has also demonstrated that solar energy remains crucial not only in providing the world with an opportunity to cut down on its carbon footprint, but also to confront the numerous impediments to sustainable economic growth worsened by climate change. 

this story was featured in our series, slipping through our fingers: the future of water.

there’s no bathroom on the boat, subjecting the researchers to an eight-hour dilemma between hydration, bladder comfort and a quick dip in the water. they grab bites of sandwich during rare lulls in activity, one almost losing their lunch as the boat rocks in another’s wake. the crew proceeds to the next sampling site, their chatter fading under the forceful wind and the roar of the engine as the boat gains speed. the sun blazes down from the clear, mid-afternoon sky. 

suddenly, a pack of dolphins surfaces alongside the boat, appearing to defend their territory. little do the dolphins know, the people onboard have the same goal –– to defend the territory against invading algae.  

each month, researchers at the sanibel-captiva conservation foundation (sccf) marine laboratory collect water samples from the gulf of mexico and caloosahatchee river and estuary, following a route reaching from sanibel island to lake okeechobee. the project, referred to as clew, an acronym for “coastal, lake, estuary and watershed”, is a collaboration between scientists at sccf, the university of florida and north carolina state university. the researchers are systematically analyzing water quality, microscopic algae material and discharges from water control structures to identify the driving forces behind the region’s harmful algal blooms. in doing so, they hope to inform water management policies and other solutions that will help control the blooms that have devastated southwest florida’s critical ecosystems.

an upstream battle

microscopic algae called phytoplankton rely on nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous to proliferate. too much growth creates an algal bloom, which is harmful as a plethora of algae can clog fish and invertebrate gills, use up the oxygen in the water when decomposed by bacteria and block the light that reaches submerged aquatic plants. additionally, some phytoplankton produce toxic compounds that pose serious health risks to marine organisms.

fertilizer, wastewater and other anthropogenic sources of nutrients that enter water bodies can help algae quickly multiply, contributing to harmful algal blooms. this connection has been controversial for red tide, a toxic algal bloom of the marine phytoplankton karenia brevis. red tide was documented in the gulf of mexico as far back as the 1700s, according to the mote marine laboratory and aquarium. it is believed to originate offshore, when iron-rich dust from the sahara desert blows across the atlantic ocean and settles in the gulf of mexico. the bacteria trichodesmium consumes the dust’s iron, creating a useable form of nitrogen for karenia brevis. the bloom may be further fueled by a current that causes deep ocean water loaded with nutrients from plant material on the seafloor to rise to the surface. 

but red tide’s long history and natural underlying processes doesn’t mean humans aren’t part of the equation. in a 2022 study, researchers used advanced data analysis techniques to demonstrate a causal relationship between the amount of nitrogen and karenia brevis in the water along a path reaching over 100 miles into the interior of florida. their results reveal that nitrogen pollution, even from far upstream, can intensify red tide blooms that travel to the coast. 

red tide is caused by an interplay between oceanographic phenomena and human influence, said miles medina, an environmental scientist at the university of florida center for coastal solutions and lead author of the study. “sometimes, it gets characterized as: it’s either natural or it’s manmade,” he said. “it gets its start naturally, but we can make it worse.” 

and we have. “the frequency of very intense blooms over the past decade is higher,” said eric milbrandt, the director of the sccf marine laboratory and co-author of the study, citing serious red tide blooms in the region in 2018, 2019 and 2020. the expanding population and development of south florida has increased the runoff of nutrients that fuel blooms, and warming water allows the algae to grow more rapidly, he said. 

major nutrient sources include the caloosahatchee river and lake okeechobee, which are classified as impaired for nutrient enrichment by state standards. discharges can transport nutrients from the lake and river to the water bodies surrounding sanibel, several of which were recently added to the list of impaired waterways. and any freshwater blue-green algal blooms in these bodies of water can travel downstream. although these algae will dissipate in the salty conditions of the ocean, their toxins can linger, and the nutrients they leave behind can help fuel blooms of karenia brevis and other marine phytoplankton.

but sanibel depends on this freshwater to hydrate wetlands and maintain the delicate salinity balance of critical food sources and habitats like tape grass and oyster reefs during the dry season. “we’ve often advocated for the water from the lake during that time because we need the freshwater, regardless of how polluted it is,” milbrandt said.

advocating doesn’t guarantee access amid the competing agricultural, domestic and environmental demand for south florida’s finite freshwater resources. during two droughts in the early 2000s, the estuary didn’t get the freshwater it needed to maintain the salinity gradient, leading to mass tape grass die-offs, said rick bartleson, a research scientist at the sccf marine laboratory. the grass never fully recovered and still cannot support more than a few manatees, which can eat 100 pounds of grass per day, he said.

just as everyone is scrambling for enough water when it’s dry, no one can handle too much when it’s wet. but an overflowing lake could have dire consequences. in 1928, a hurricane caused lake okeechobee to flood, killing thousands of people, according to the national weather service. “when the lake gets too high, the water has to go somewhere,” said paul julian, a hydrologic modeler at sccf. “we’re kind of the release valve for the lake because we’re the biggest estuary out of the two.” excess water discharged to the caloosahatchee estuary delivers a one-two punch of salinity disruption and pollution. the fact that the region’s precipitation is becoming concentrated into fewer, heavier rainfall events exacerbates water storage issues and increases runoff, julian said. when it rains, it pours. 

a perfect storm of conditions led to a catastrophic red tide outbreak on the florida gulf coast in 2018. the previous season’s hurricane irma threatened to overflow lake okeechobee, where freshwater microcystis phytoplankton —which produce the liver toxin microcystin — were blooming. “there was panic, the gates were opened and the water levels were lowered,” milbrandt said. “when they released that bloom, the conditions were perfect. in the caloosahatchee, the water was warm, it hadn’t started raining yet to dilute it, and it ended up getting transported all the way down to sanibel.”

once the bloom reached and dissipated in the gulf of mexico, its nutrients helped fuel a patch of red tide that had moved near shore. “it was really bad conditions in the freshwater portion and really bad conditions in the marine portion,” julian said. “and as discharges were happening, the red tide was essentially being fed by the nutrients.” 

the interaction between freshwater and saltwater algal blooms spells disaster for the island’s shorebirds, turtles and other animals. “when those two feed off of each other, it creates this entire habitat of death,” said breanna frankel, the wildlife rehabilitation manager at sanibel’s clinic for the rehabilitation of wildlife (crow). “2018 was a devastating year for us.” 

red tide’s acute deadliness is due to brevetoxin, a toxic compound produced by karenia brevis that affects the nervous system of many aquatic creatures as it passes through the food chain. shorebirds impacted by red tide experience a range of symptoms, including twitching and tremors, disorientation and loss of function in their legs, sometimes stumbling like “a drunk kid walking home from the bar,” frankel said. similarly, sea turtles exposed to brevetoxin can suffer seizures and may struggle to right themselves in the water, causing them to drown, said kelly sloan, the coastal wildlife director and sea turtle program coordinator at sccf.

about 250 sick or dead turtles were documented during the 2018 red tide outbreak — a dramatic increase from the approximately 35 seen in a normal year, sloan said. what’s worse, the toll of this bloom may still be rising. by analyzing the blood of nesting sea turtles and unhatched eggs or unsuccessful hatchlings, sloan has found that adult turtles can transfer brevetoxin compounds to their offspring.

red tide could be a tipping point for sea turtles and other species in the region facing a myriad of threats. “when you add one more on top of that, we could very realistically start seeing declines in an already stressed population,” sloan said.

gathering clews

the clew research project aims to unravel the complex network of relationships between lake discharges, water quality and algal blooms in this interconnected system. “we are so often in a response mode when the blooms happen,” milbrandt says. “having the conditions of the water before, during and after an event is what we need to understand the drivers of the event.” 

at each sampling site, the researchers operate like a well-oiled machine, handing off equipment, logging data and storing samples with assembly line efficiency. they submerge a sensor that reads the salinity, temperature, ph, oxygen content and turbidity, or clarity, of the water and measures its level of chlorophyll, a photosynthetic pigment found in plants, and dissolved substances from organic matter. the team also deploys an instrument to measure the transmission of light through the water.

some of the sampling sites feature a continuous sensor that measures and transmits water quality parameters hourly as part of sccf’s river, estuary and coastal observing network (recon) system. recon generates much more information than can be acquired through physical sampling, providing necessary context to noteworthy snapshots. it also allows for near real-time responses to changes in water quality. for example, if the recon data indicates the beginnings of a bloom, the researchers can initiate large-scale, event-driven sampling — “what we do for the monthly trips, but on steroids,” milbrandt said.

the team collects water samples that are sent to a national environmental laboratory accreditation program (nelap)-certified laboratory that measures nitrogen and phosphorous in various forms. other samples are returned to the sccf marine laboratory, where research associate mark thompson validates the sensor’s chlorophyll readings — which serve as a measure of the amount of algae material in the water — using a more rigorous technique. 

research assistant sierra greene analyzes the samples using a flowcam instrument that takes a picture of anything in the right size range and with the same light transmission properties as phytoplankton. using this data, she can estimate the distribution of different types of phytoplankton in the water, including cyanobacteria, dinoflagellates and diatoms. greene is building libraries of each category of algae to train the computer to automatically recognize and sort the images. clew researcher ed phlips, a professor of algal physiology and ecology at the university of florida, is using a more painstaking but precise microscope-based method to quantify the species composition of the phytoplankton in the water samples.

clew researcher natalie nelson, a professor of biological and agricultural engineering at north carolina state university, is using these data inputs to develop a statistical model that identifies correlations between water quality parameters, lake discharges and phytoplankton species distribution. “what we’re trying to understand is: are there certain types of environmental conditions that encourage the growth of certain types of algae?” nelson said. in addition to providing insight into the different variables promoting algal blooms, the model may be able to help predict the effect of an upcoming discharge on algae populations, she said.  

a lengthy step in the sampling assembly line is passing water through a filter to collect the particulate organic matter (pom) — solid particles suspended in the water. clew researcher elise morrison, a professor of environmental engineering sciences at the university of florida, analyzes certain chemical characteristics of the pom to understand its source. the ratio of a heavier and lighter form of carbon is a signature of different photosynthetic pathways, helping to distinguish phytoplankton from other types of plant matter in the water. “from that value, we can say that it looks like a certain source material. so it looks like it might be phytoplankton or it looks like it might be from terrestrial plants that are in the area,” morrison said. “it’s a way of fingerprinting where the carbon came from.”

similarly, the ratio of a heavier and lighter version of nitrogen serves as a mark of various environmental processes, shedding light on the origin and journey of the nitrogen in the samples. “it can give you an idea of whether it looks like the nitrogen came from a septic system versus an inorganic fertilizer versus a lake okeechobee discharge,” morrison said. additionally, by measuring the carbon and nitrogen ratios in the amino acids in the pom, she can track how these elements are cycled between phytoplankton as they decompose and their nutrients are consumed, providing insight into the phytoplankton dynamics that can fuel algal blooms.  

collectively, the data will help water management agencies identify important targets for mitigating algal blooms. “this will give them information that can help guide them to manage the parts of the system that would be most effective in terms of reducing the potential for blooms,” phlips said.

since the first sampling trip in november, the team has observed the highest nitrogen and phosphorous concentrations in the upper caloosahatchee river, suggesting that the nutrients came primarily from the land bordering the river rather than lake inputs. “what it tells us is that there’s a lot of work to do in the watershed, and that for a long time, we ignored that part of the system,” milbrandt said. 

the project may also help inform a rate of discharge that could relieve a brimming lake while minimizing blooms and other ecological damage. phlips’ research has shown that the longer the water stews in the caloosahatchee river and estuary, the more time there is for algae to grow and form blooms. a fast, high-volume discharge could limit blooms upstream, assuming there is no bloom in the lake that could be released, but the nutrients in the water could feed marine phytoplankton in the gulf of mexico. additionally, a burst from a hose instead of a trickle from a tap may affect the estuary’s salinity balance, and a rush of water from the nearest water control structure could displace the larvae of spawning fish and oysters in the estuary to less suitable downstream environments. “all these relationships are so complex that without doing sophisticated modeling, it’s too difficult to come up with reasonable suggestions,” phlips said. “that’s why this research is going on right now: to define the ideal discharge rates under all different kinds of scenarios.”  

progress in bloom

other efforts to manage how water is dispersed throughout the region are underway. one is the construction of a holding reservoir for excess water that can be tapped to maintain the salinity gradient in the caloosahatchee estuary during the dry season. the water that enters the reservoir will be treated with aluminum sulfate that binds to and removes some nutrients. “the water that’s coming out of the reservoir will be cleaner than when it came in,” said leah reidenbach, a research and policy associate at sccf. “but even though it’s really big, it doesn’t even account for half of our water storage needs in the estuary. so water storage needs in our watershed are an important issue for the future.”

another major development is the lake okeechobee system operating manual (losom), an intricate plan to reengineer how the lake’s water is distributed throughout the region. the goal is to regulate discharges in a way that addresses the needs of all parties, including supplying more freshwater to the everglades once it has passed through natural water treatment areas that soak up nutrients to prevent further degradation and maintaining only desired flows to the caloosahatchee estuary. “what we’re really trying to do through the losom process and while working with our partners is establish more of a balance,” said matt depaolis, the environmental policy director at sccf. “because essentially, the way it’s set up now, we are the dumping ground for everything, regardless of how the health of the estuary is affected.” 

“we need to share the adversity,” milbrandt said. “it can’t always be the environment that has to be the sacrificial lamb.”

in addition to water management, reducing nutrient loading is critical for south florida’s freshwater to benefit all who need it. the conversion of septic tanks to sewage systems prevents leakage of nutrient-packed waste into waterways — an issue that has been exacerbated by sea level rise, depaolis said. it’s even better if treated sewage, which still contains nutrients, can be used on land rather than sent directly into the water. the caloosahatchee connect is a pipeline that will send reclaimed wastewater from fort myers to cape coral, where it will be used for irrigation and fire protection, instead of releasing it into the caloosahatchee river.

throughout southwest florida, ordinances that help combat nutrient enrichment include restrictions on the timing and location of fertilizer application, protection of native plants, which do not require fertilizer because they have adapted to thrive in local conditions, and limits on the amount of impervious surfaces, like concrete, that contribute to stormwater runoff. 

political agendas are at the heart of many such measures to protect the environment — and their demise. years into the development of a science-backed losom plan, a section of a new bill introduced a slew of red tape, requiring legislative approval for funding for water management projects. after the bill passed through the senate, sccf provided a platform to send an email opposing the bill to the governor, who vetoed it. sccf offers action alerts that inform subscribers of other opportunities to advocate for the needs of coastal ecosystems. 

“i think the biggest thing that you can do as an individual is to vote. you’ve got to vote for local legislators that believe in water quality and that you can trust,” reidenbach said. “stay active; stay involved. use your voice when you can. and let your legislators know how you feel about water quality. because, sometimes, they listen.”

vacuolar myelinopathy is a neurological disease most commonly seen in bird species such as eagles and coots. the brains of the infected organisms develop lesions in the white matter of the nervous system, causing a loss of motor function. mortuary circles call this “swiss cheese brain.”

from its first recorded instance near degray lake in arkansas during the winter of 1994-1995, researchers, including aquatic scientist susan wilde, conducted field and laboratory studies to determine how species contract this disease. through laboratory and field experimentation, wilde and her team have recently concluded that a toxin produced by cyanobacteria is growing on invasive plant species within water bodies in the southeastern united states.

wilde, an associate professor at the university of georgia, worked with an international team from various scientific backgrounds. their findings, published in science, discovered the epiphytic cyanobacteria (aetokthonos hydrillicola) grow on hydrilla verticillata, a non-native plant species found in bodies of water. wildlife, such as fish, birds, and amphibians, eat these plants and consume the neurotoxin that leads to vacuolar myelinopathy.

vacuolar myelinopathy is not limited to the waterfowl that feed on these plants, explained anton j. reiner, a professor of anatomy and neurobiology at the university of tennessee health science center.

“it’s not a uniquely avian brain disease. it winds up looking like a uniquely avian brain disease because you have to consume a lot of it,” said reiner.

vacuolar myelinopathy also affects fish and amphibians that end up eating these cyanobacteria-infected invasive plants. fish, amphibians and waterfowl that feed on hydrilla become infected with vacuolar myelinopathy. higher-level predators such as coots and eagles consume the smaller animals, thus continuing the spread of the disease throughout the entire food web.

“so-called ‘apex predators’ like eagles, for example, wind up being especially susceptible to [vacuolar myelinopathy] because of their diet,”reiner said.

the disease manifests approximately five days after exposure when clinical signs of loss of motor control function become visible in avian species like eagles and coots. infected coots will float on the surface of the water on their backs and spin in circles, making them easy prey for eagles and other large avian predators. infected eagles will sit on tree branches with their wings drooping downward. according to reiner, there are instances of eagles flying into the sides of mountains while infected with vacuolar myelinopathy.

“every eagle i’ve ever seen with symptoms [of vacuolar myelinopathy] has died,” said william bowerman, professor and chair of the department of environmental science & technology at the university of maryland.

bowerman is a long-time collaborator of wilde’s on vacuolar myelinopathy, and his current research revolves around eagles as indicators of climate change and contaminants around the great lakes. he explained that birds are quality gauges of how the environment responds to various stressors, so the conservation of avian species from vacuolar myelinopathy impacts everyone.

“[vacuolar myelinopathy] killed tens of thousands of waterfowl and over 100 bald eagles. so, it’s a new, emerging disease, and it could be linked to pollution and also may be somewhat of an indicator of climate change,” said bowerman.

wilde and her team discuss spreading awareness and advocacy as a means to combat vacuolar myelinopathy in their recently published research. early in the paper, they state that the shift from the previous name of the neurological disease, “avian vacuolar myelinopathy,” to its current title “vacuolar myelinopathy” is necessary as it is not only limited to avian species. wilde and her team state that they are not yet sure of the potential impact vacuolar myelinopathy has on humans and recommend that further research be conducted.

“we want people to know the lakes where this disease has been documented and to use caution in consuming birds and fish from these lakes,” wilde told the american association for the advancement of science.

while there is still plenty of research to be done on vacuolar myelinopathy, wilde and her team’s discovery of the link between the cyanobacterial toxins and the lethal neurological disorder helps lie to rest the source of the perplexing avian deaths. bowerman hopes that wilde’s work will serve as a reminder of the importance of conserving a clean environment.

“it’s just important to understand that our organisms in the environment tell us what’s going on,” bowerman said. “if the birds and the mammals are healthy, then people are healthy.”

new orleans and hurricane katrina

in august 2005, hurricane katrina slammed into mississippi, louisiana, alabama, florida, and texas and ushered in one of the worst natural disasters of this generation. nearly 2,000 people lost their lives, 800,000 lost their homes, and ultimately cost the gulf coast region $161,000,000 in damage. in 2005, new orleans was over 60% black and of the entire population around 20% lived below the poverty line. because of the high poverty levels in new orleans, the taxes which would have been used for the upkeep of infrastructure in the city were lacking. 

and even though a mandatory evacuation was ordered by then-new orleans mayor ray nagins, a lot of these people did not have vehicles or money to evacuate and more importantly they did not have anywhere to go.

many possessed personal transportation, but the availability of cash for gas to evacuate at the end of the month before payday was a constraint (the hurricane struck on aug. 29). cash on hand for incidentals was also noted as a reason for not evacuating: “the hurricane came at the wrong time. we were waiting for our pay-day,” “no money for gas,” and “money was hard to come by at the time.”

a particularly interest aspect of living in the south is the close-knit nature of families, therefore most of these people lived in the same neighborhoods — and even homes — as their entire families for generations, which can be traced back to sentiments of family established in the enslavement period of african-american history. 

new orleans was hit particularly hard by hurricane katrina, not because they received the brunt force of the storm, but because the levee system failed and ultimately swallowed over half of the city, which already sat below sea level. new orleans natives and those from the surrounding area will tell you the urban legend that the levees were intentionally broken in an effort to save upper echelon areas of the city and in turn sacrifice the almost exclusively black and poverty-stricken areas of the city, such as the 9th ward. the army corp of engineers’-constructed levees were made to handle must stronger winds and higher levels of water than katrina brought to the city, so even if this myth was to be debunked, the federal government is ultimately responsible for lives lost by the levee failures and flooding because there is no reason the levees should have failed on such a large scale.

the post-storm era was chaotic to say the least. it took the federal and state government days to respond to rescue, food, water, and shelter needs of the citizens of new orleans. this catastrophe of a response was and still exists as the defining point of george w. bush’s presidency — even more so than 9/11. 

johannesburg, south africa, mining communities

johannesburg, south africa’s entire economy centers around mining anything from coal, platinum, gold, and diamonds, asbestos, iron ore, chrome, copper, emerald, fluorspar, ilmenite, lead, manganese, nickel, phosphate, silica, tin, vanadium, uranium, zinc, and zircon. often times, when the balancing scale of economic growth and human rights becomes a challenge, economic growth disproportionately wins the battles especially when concerning those who lack the power or resources to fight against such mistreatment. this coupled with the strongly racists history of south africa equates to a very dangerous and seemingly helpless situation for black south africans. 

apartheid directly translates to “apartness.” it was a system of government that established segregation as the law of the land. it mandated that nonwhite south africans which made up a majority of the population would be forced to live and use separate facilities than whites limiting contact between the groups. these policies remained in effect for nearly 50 years. in both theory and practice, it does not differ much from jim crow and “separate but equal” laws in america. the remnants of this era can stills be identified within almost every aspect of life in south africa. bobby peek is a prominent environmentalist in south africa. he spoke on the fact that the apartheid-like pattern of placing dangerous industries such as mining adjacent to black and immigrant communities is still very much at play.

“whether it’s south durban or on the cape, hazardous sites are always near black and colored communities,” peek says. “it’s south africa’s historical blue print.”

although very few formal studies exist on the qualitative health affects that proximity to such industries have on south africans mostly because of the lack of an official health care system in the poorest communities, countless interviews and recollections of the inhumane conditions these people face have been recorded. 

gold mining in particular is a very large, profitable industry in south africa, but a byproduct of this is uranium which is extremely toxic to humans. there’s no need for this uranium so more often than not the miners so it is simply dumped and because properly disposal can be costly, its usually just buried which was poisoned the ground water supply of johannesburg. not only is the air and water affected, the food supply is in danger because the same way breathing in these chemicals is dangerous to humans, it is just was harmful for livestock and crops in these 

although functioning mines have the most severe affect on the day to day lives of citizens, abandoned mines cause just as much stress and strife. more than 600 of these abandoned mines surround johannesburg, south africa. they simply exists as mountains of dust right next to residential areas so that once the wind blows, the dust blows into these communities to be breathed in by the residents causing tuberculosis, asthma, rashes, and skin diseases because it contains trace amounts of copper, lead, cyanide, and arsenic. all of these chemicals are toxic when breathed in over a long period of time and can cause much more permanent damage. communities. 

turkey creek community in gulfport, mississippi

the turkey creek community was founded in 1866 when land previously owned by the arkansas lumber company was settled on by newly freed slaves. among them was joshua (pluck) white who is my great great great great grandfather. they purchased 320 acres of wetlands — bottomland, coastal lowland maritime forests, freshwater marsh, scrub shrub and flood plains — featuring a diverse array of trees and plants and wild and marine life. it was inhabited by flocks of wild turkeys and thus become known as turkey creek.  

in 1906, 12 of the original 320 acres of land was sold to the gulf coast creosote company for the establishment of a creosote plant. creosote is a chemical used in wood creosote, coal tar creosote, coal tar, coal tar pitch, and coal tar pitch volatiles. it is made of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons phenol with creosols which is created by burning wood coals and added to the resin of the creosote bush. this chemical is carcinogenic to humans (meaning that is causes cancer). 

the stipulation to opening this plant was that they would have to hire men from the community to work in the factory which in theory was an amazing opportunity for these men to support their families. in reality, these men worked 6 days a week sometimes 10+ hour days in these plants for $0.25 – $0.40 a week. not only where these men exposed to an obscene amount of this chemical because they weren’t given the proper protective gear nor knowledge about the affects of the chemical they were handling, the proximity to the homes these men lived in was dangerously close. they worked in this plant all day inhaling these cancerous causing chemicals then went home to their families and carried that poison into their home where their children slept all unbeknownst to them. 

i can actually see the site of the plant from my home which is, they breathed it in, they touched it, its soaked into their clothes which they wore home and hugged their children in. the plant sat right on the creek which many people in the community fished in to feed their family’s was walking distance from the residential neighborhood most of these men lived and where i grew up. the area where the plant was is visibly destroyed. acknowledging the central theme of a lack of awareness, many people who live in the city of gulfport, mississippi, are unaware of the historical significance of the turkey creek community or the way these people were brutalized in the name of economic development. 

flint water crisis in flint, michigan

in 2011, in the midst of the great recession, flint, michigan, was the second poorest city in america, with more than 40% of its citizens living below the federal poverty line. after the collapse of car industry, thousands of people lost their jobs and could no longer contribute to the cities economy thus causing an unrelenting spell of stagnance. because of the disastrous economic state of the city, an emergency city manager was appointed by the governor to try to effectively cut cost and revive the city from turmoil. for five decades prior, the city’s water came from detroit, but in an attempt to save money, in 2014 the decision was made to change th city’s main water supply from lake huron to the flint river. 

it is most important to note that for more than a century, the flint river was used as a dump site for industries including car factories, meatpacking plants, lumber and paper mills, raw sewage from the city, agricultural run off, and landfills. the river is even rumored to have caught on fire — yes, a river. this was not a secret because the city actively contributed to the pollution of the river, but because this was an understood fact it would be assumed the city would take the proper steps to clean this water before sending it through the pipes and into the homes of millions of people, but that was not the case. 

because the water was so corrosive, it caused lead to leach from the old pipes in the city which created an entirely new issue; not only was the water contaminated, it now reeked of lead which is extremely dangerous for children and pregnant women. this situation began in 2011 and flint, michigan, has not had clean, reliable drinking water in over 2,000 days. 

it’s important to understand that the city of flint is 57% black, 37% white, with 6% other races and that is the only reason such atrocities were allowed to occur. as a report from the michigan civil rights commission, released in 2017, and according to the associated press, said: “would the flint water crisis have been allowed to happen in birmingham, ann arbor, or east grand rapids? we believe the answer is no, and that the vestiges of segregation and discrimination found in flint made it a unique target. the lack of political clout left the residents with nowhere to turn, no way to have their voices heard.”

—

sources:

karoub, jeff. “commission: ‘systemic racism’ at root of flint water crisis.” ap news. associated press, february 17, 2017. https://apnews.com/article/df42de2ec4424193866467a2981ccb51. 

knight, dannielle. “environment-south africa: environmental racism, a lingering legacy of apartheid,” april 3, 2001. http://www.ipsnews.net/2001/04/environment-south-africa-environmental-racism-a-lingering-legacy-of-apartheid/. 

bobbins, guy trangos & kerry. “gold mining exploits and the legacies of johannesburg’s mining landscapes.” scenario journal, june 22, 2017. https://scenariojournal.com/article/gold-mining-exploits/. 

elder, keith et al. “african americans’ decisions not to evacuate new orleans before hurricane katrina: a qualitative study.” american journal of public health vol. 97 suppl 1,suppl 1 (2007): s124-9. doi:10.2105/ajph.2006.100867

phoenix – when the sun is up, he’s up and ready to hit the road by 8. flatbed trucks are loaded with brimming barrels of water, and the teams take off – up and down the burnt orange washboard roads that crisscross the navajo nation reservation.

zoel zohnnie grew up on a ranch in these vast lands, knowing what it’s like to live without running water, knowing what it means to drive for miles to fill up at a community water station and then haul it back home.

“for some families, it’s a whole day of leaving home, waiting in line, coming back, unloading,” he said. “just to drink water and have water for living.”

when the covid-19 pandemic arrived on the reservation, zohnnie saw families and elders sheltering in place – and no one helping them to haul water they desperately needed.

“so i took up a paypal and purchased a water tank, put it in the back of my truck and hit the road, and ended up doing that day after day,” said zohnnie, who calls his group water warriors united.

water is a precious commodity that’s scarce in many places across the u.s. but even more so in rural native american communities like the navajo nation, where a virus that requires hand-washing and proper hygiene has taken an especially heavy toll.

zohnnie, 42, is a boilermaker by trade, doing pipe welding, power plant maintenance and refinery construction. but he was laid off at the end of march, just as covid-19 cases began increasing across the sprawling reservation.

he has underlying health conditions that put him at higher risk of contracting covid-19 and suffering more. but as the virus that causes the disease took hold of dinétah, he knew he had to find a way to help, even while practicing social distancing and staying safe.

his is the story of how one person saw a problem that needed a solution and started a movement to try to find one – as a friend said, “changing the world one barrel at a time.”

a scarce resource

a november report released by the nonprofit us water alliance found that more than 2 million americans lack access to running water, indoor plumbing or wastewater services.

those disparities are worse in communities of color and even more extreme, the study found, among indigenous people – whose households are 19 times more likely to lack indoor plumbing than those of white families.

on the navajo reservation, which stretches 27,000 square miles through arizona and into new mexico and utah, an estimated 30% of the 174,000 residents lack access to running water. many, the us water alliance report said, have less than 10 gallons of water in their homes at any given time, sometimes using as little as 2 or 3 gallons a day. the average american uses 88 gallons a day.

some residents drive hours to get water to haul home, ration what water they do have between hygienic uses and cooking, or stockpile it in case of emergency.

one woman, the report noted, has bartered homemade pies for water.

these obstacles often force residents to travel to towns bordering the reservation to buy water, said monica harvey, a navajo who founded defend our community, a group working to assist elders during the pandemic.

harvey, who lives in leupp, points to other problems, such as broken windmills that hinder water pumping and limited hours at tribal chapter houses, the government subdivisions and communal gathering places where navajos often get their water.

“there was one point … where the chapter house in leupp was announcing that they were going to shut down a water station,” harvey said. “the water from that water station is for livestock only. but sometimes, residents have to resort to that water to drink.”

a report by the navajo nation’s department of water resources notes that a lack of reliable drinking water “stifles economic growth throughout the reservation” while contributing to higher incidence of disease.

add an extremely contagious virus into this mix and the circumstances become even more dire, experts note.

“you can imagine if you don’t have access to running water, then the very basic things you need to do to stay home and stay safe during a viral pandemic aren’t possible,” said george mcgraw, founder of digdeep, a nonprofit that works on the reservation to bring running water into homes and schools.

“you can’t wash your hands for 20 seconds several times a day with soap and water. you’re constantly being forced to leave social isolation … to drive to a grocery store that’ll have bottled water … or to drive to a gas station, a truck stop, a school, a library – if they’re open – to take a shower or collect water.”

cynthia harris, director of tribal programs at the environmental law institute in washington d.c., said the long-standing issues around access to water and water quality in indian country can be boiled down to three main obstacles: resources, logistics and battles over water rights.

funding for infrastructure improvements is limited. the indian health service reported last year a backlog of almost 2,000 sanitation-related construction projects in indian country and estimated it would cost $2.7 billion to provide all american indians and alaska natives with safe drinking water and adequate sewerage systems.

the rural nature of homes also makes for logistical challenges. on the navajo reservation, which is bigger than the state of west virginia, many households are not good candidates for centralized water systems because extending water lines to low-density, mountainous areas is extremely expensive, according to harris’ group.

“we’ve heard quite a bit from congress and the executive branch about looking at infrastructure, ensuring that tribes are included in that at a sufficient level,” harris said, noting some opportunities to address these issues may be part of the $2.2 trillion coronoavirus relief package known as the cares act.

“there is a toolbox,” she said. “the question is, which tools bring to bear ensuring tribes are included.”

the navajo nation has received $714 million under the cares act, and president jonathan nez has proposed using $300 million of that for agriculture projects and water infrastructure, including improved residential plumbing.

final expenditures are being negotiated between the navajo nation council and nez. but time is running out: the federal government is requiring that cares act funding be spent by year’s end.

a hand for the forgotten

“we will never be able to measure the magnitude of language, culture, or history that this virus has taken from our tribes. … we have already lost so much, but are also collectively doing so much.”

zoel zohnnie’s words punctuate the website of collective medicine, the nonprofit that serves as the umbrella organization for his water warriors united campaign. the effort has grown from one man and one water tank to an operation where volunteers deliver on average 5,000 gallons a week to residents across the reservation.

“the idea behind this whole campaign … was to reach the people who can’t get to the water themselves, and to reach the people who are … far away enough to have been forgotten,” zohnnie said.

“and there’s been a lot of people that have been forgotten.”

the more he ventured out, the more donations started flowing in. he used the money to buy 55-gallon water barrels for navajos living out of 5-gallon buckets or small containers.

zohnnie now has four 16-foot flatbed trucks that carry 550-gallon tanks, hoses, equipment and a water pump. his team has delivered more than 400 barrels and more than 100,000 gallons of water to more than 20 communities.

“now what we’re trying to do is figure out a refill system for the places we’ve already been, so that we can just go back to these homes and kind of recirculate where we’ve already been,” he said. “but if we do that, then it takes away from us being able to reach other areas that haven’t been given barrels yet.

“so we’re trying to get as many barrels out there as possible, first, so that way at least the residents and our elders and tribal members can have a barrel. that makes their life a little easier when they have to haul water for themselves.”

along the way, zohnnie has met dozens of people, many whose circumstances brought tears to his eyes. one family of 18 was living in a small shack with no running water. another home included several children living alone without water or electricity.

“the dad had passed away probably four months ago, and the mom had passed away two months before that,” he recalled. “so the kids were just trying to make their way, and there was nobody that was really helping them.

“that was one that kind of stuck with me.”

another man was caring for his 90-year-old mother, who requires a feeding tube. they lived off a 20-mile dirt road and were unable to haul water on their own because the man couldn’t leave his mother for the time it would take to go out and return.

“it’s been quite an eye-opener,” zohnnie said. “growing up on the reservation, you kind of know what’s going on. but until you’re there visiting each home, talking to each person, it never really hits you until you hear them or you look at them in the eye and see how they feel.”

harvey’s group, defend our community, began collaborating with zohnnie to get water to the elders it works with.

“it was very difficult for elders throughout the community to get drinking water, so his team came out and was able to provide 55-gallon water barrels with drinking water,” she said. “they had a water tank in the back of their vehicle as well. so elders who needed water jugs or containers filled, they were able to help fill those containers with drinking water.

“a lot of them were so grateful … that a few of the elders broke into tears because they received help. finally someone showed up to help them, to provide aid to them.”

zohnnie’s effort is just one of several, and harris and others note that any permanent solutions to the water access issues must go beyond trucking in gallons here and there. the pandemic, harris said, is “an opportunity to stop, to pause, to reflect and consider these issues and look at how we can do better.”

zohnnie hopes to continue his initiative beyond covid-19, to keep helping his people in whatever way he can. he wants the world to see that not all that’s come from the pandemic is sorrow and tragedy.

“i feel like because of this virus, there are beautiful things happening,” he said. “and i think one of them is the fact that it has brought a lot of people together.

“there’s a lot of people still out there suffering from it, still out there protecting themselves from it, too.”

but, he added: “even though it’s a dangerous and ugly virus, it has done beautiful things to help people see that we can come together in times of crisis.”

—

this story originally was published on cronkite news and features additional reporting. for more stories, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.

by animating a water molecule, the story grabs children’s attention to the importance of this crucial resource and how their everyday lives involve water usage. “the little water molecule” story series brings a sense of responsibility in children to save water. the particular story being submitted today is the first one in the series, which introduces the water molecule character, while exploring the laboratory setting. through this kid’s story, i hope to make water a friend that can inspire children to value, conserve and avoid polluting it. early exposure to water conservation and impact will increase the support that we need to continue on our path toward sustainable use of resources.

additionally, an early introduction of scientific concepts to the curricula of children better equips them for future skills and sustainable success, because it sparks curiosity and a sense of exploration of their surroundings. i follow the intellectual creative route when developing my stories for children to foster interest in water as an important resource in their lives. in this way, i use “the little water molecule” to introduce the idea of molecular charges as a result of loss or gain of atomic particles. for example, at some point in the story, the molecule loses a proton and becomes unstable, which really means it is negatively charged. the trick is to deliver the scientific terms in the story to the kids in a way that makes sense to them. i confess that some concepts are much harder to explain than others, but i still have fun trying.

when asked about my source of inspiration, i remember my days working in a laboratory as a chemist. the work required careful planning and great attention to detail. so during the mental pauses, i allowed myself to be creative and think up stories about the chemicals i worked with. now that i no longer work in a laboratory setting, i find comfort in my artistic hobbies such as writing about how a little molecule of water is chemically changed because of her surroundings. the story still needs a few more tweaks, but the storyfest contest for the 2021 planet forward summit is a great place to test it. the ultimate goal is to publish it and start writing the next science-backed tale involving a group of children helping “the little water molecule” save a river from being polluted.

while the perils of plastic pollution in our oceans and landfills are well-known, obstetricians have recently discovered a startling new development—the first evidence of microplastics have been found in human placentas.

the destructive nature of microplastics is no longer confined to ecological consequences; it permeates human health too.

the effects of plastic consumption remain poorly understood, as research is still in its infancy. however, early literature suggests several reasons for concern.  

synthetic microfibers, such as those from clothing, make up 14% of all global plastic production, according to a global study conducted in 2020. these fibers are especially harmful given the ease at which they break into smaller pieces—fragments so small, that they can be inhaled. the study suggests that inhalation of microfibers can cause localized toxicity in the body—thereby inducing or enhancing an immune response. chronic exposure to these fibers are anticipated to have the worst effects, given that the accumulation of chemicals such as bpa in the body have been shown to depress the immune system, trigger cancerous growths, prompt neurotoxicity, and disrupt the microbiome in the gut.

another emerging area of research on microplastics concerns the gut microbiome. the gut microbiome refers to all the microorganisms that live in the gastrointestinal tract; it’s essential for the function of mammals.

preliminary findings show that when microplastics interact with gastrointestinal microorganisms, it can increase the phagocytic activity of immune cells, impacting metabolism, immune function, and behavior.

worse still, nano plastics, the smallest of plastic particles, are small enough to pass through intestinal barriers, just like placental barriers. last year a study on nano plastics demonstrated they can cross the blood-brain barrier, causing brain damage in fish. 

the uncontained spread of plastics in our environment leaves everyone vulnerable. microplastics are now entering the terrestrial food web at alarming rates. particles in soil can be ingested at multiple stages of the food chain. scientists recently observed nano plastic transfer from soil to chickens via earthworms, raising concerns for human consumption. 

the microscopic size of these pollutants allows them to travel enormous distances. in a single day, some particles can travel up to 95km (59 miles). plastic will soon be on every inch of our planet; in fact, some were just found on the glaciers of the tibetan plateau.

even in remote locations, levels of microplastics are plentiful. in the french pyrenees mountains, microplastic fragments, fibers, and films were found at relatively high levels, despite the area being sparsely populated, and far from any industrial, commercial, or large agricultural activities.

in confronting the pervasive and universal threat of microplastics, our collective responsibility becomes increasingly evident. plastic is no longer just a marine issue; it has become a global challenge.

as we navigate the delicate implications of curbing plastic production, the role of the private sector will be a pivotal force in shaping the collective response. the symbiotic relationship between plastic production and cheap fossil fuel feedstock demands international intervention and a recalibration of industrial practices. 

as individuals, we can wield collective power by pressuring our policymakers to enforce industry change. today, sadly, industry change is the most effective way forward. because it doesn’t matter how many times i remember my reusable bags if the producers aren’t incentivized to ditch the plastic wrap covering every item i buy. 

as new research continues to demonstrate the detriments of plastics, it is only a matter of time before the evidence overwhelms policymakers to take action. 

navigating the anthropocene epoch is no easy task. perhaps plastics in our placentas will be just enough to move the needle this time around.

—

cate twining-ward is a senior correspondent at planet forward, a grand-prize winner of storyfest 2020, and a student at the george washington university.

then came an unexpected turning point: in october 2020, the america’s conservation enhancement act passed congress with bipartisan support. this new act provides landmark, sorely needed funding for the epa’s chesapeake bay program and other conservation efforts. in this video, drew robinson, of the choose clean water coalition, and dr. solange filoso, of the university of maryland center for environmental science, discuss why this act is so remarkable and how it may change the future of the bay.

in the state of new york, environmental organizations are fighting for access to clean water and clean air for their communities despite obstacles created by the pandemic. food & water watch, a national nonprofit founded in 2005, works on a variety of environmental issues including industrial pollution, the spread of diseases by factory farms and the privatization of water.

“we work very closely with some wonderful groups in buffalo that were contending with, you might say, an epidemic of water shutoffs that became particularly acute with the pandemic because of the absolute imperative for people to be able to wash their hands,” said new york senior organizer eric weltman. 

as millions of people all over the country lost their jobs during the pandemic, many were unable to pay rent or their utility bills, resulting in widespread water shutoffs. in june, new york gov. andrew cuomo signed a bill banning utility shutoffs until march 31, 2021, at the latest. this landmark piece of legislation is one of many that food & water watch has lobbied elected officials to pass. 

another of the organization’s major goals was realized in 2014 when cuomo banned fracking in new york state. however, this has not prevented the construction of other fossil fuel projects including pipelines and fracking power plants, which food & water watch has fought against in order to protect communities from exposure to harmful pollution. weltman says that the pandemic has not slowed down the progress on this campaign or any of the other work that his organization continues to do. 

“we have a range of tools at our disposal to interact with people. and let’s be clear, i mean, we love to see people,” weltman said. “we miss seeing a lot of our favorite activists and allies face to face but….we’ve got twitter, we’ve got facebook, we’ve got email, we’ve got texting, we’ve got zoom, we’ve got instagram — even old-fashioned telephones.”

weltman continued to list all of the ways food & water watch has adapted to the pandemic including calling elected officials, hosting webinars, and sending out petitions. in the past, the nonprofit rented buses to transport people from new york city to albany to lobby in the state’s capital. now, inspired by the marches for black lives matter, weltman and his colleagues have held outdoor rallies where people are required to socially distance and wear masks. 

despite not being able to meet with fellow activists or speak with elected officials in person, weltman has found the silver lining to an online approach. 

“you’re able to invite more people to attend and are able to invite more guest speakers. if you want to hold a zoom meeting and have a guest speaker from, you know, los angeles or honolulu or wherever, you just do it,” he said. “people are still craving connection and we’re providing it.”

just a little more than 60 miles north of new york city on the hudson river, one of the organizations that food & water watch works with faces its own battle with access to clean water. in the historical district of newburgh, generations of people have been plagued by a variety of illnesses including cancer and compromised immune systems. the newburgh clean water project (ncwp) believes the source of this hardship is the long-term contamination of their community’s water sources. 

“so we’re fighting lead in our water pipes and in our paint,” said tamsin hollo, one of ncwp’s steering committee members. “we’re fighting the pfas. we’re fighting pcbs in the hudson river. we’re fighting generations of manufacturing pollution. and most recently, we’re fighting this massive fracked gas power plant expansion just three miles from the center of newburgh.”

according to the environmental protection agency (epa), pfas is an umbrella term for man-made chemicals that do not break down easily over time and have been shown to result in a number of health issues including low birth weight for infants, compromised immune systems, thyroid problems and cancer. pcbs are organic chemicals used in industrial and commercial processes that can result in cancer, neurological issues and many other health problems. 

deborah brown, also a member of the steering committee and one of the people who founded ncwp in 2017, said that continuous industrialization has created a cycle of pollution, beginning with the construction of the stewart air national guard base in 1934. 

“the (new york state) department of health dropped our watershed from its maps very conveniently to allow the (new york state) department of transportation and the new york new jersey port authority to build a highway right on our watersheds,” brown said. “there are storm drains so if there was some kind of accident, if there was some kind of spill of chemicals or anything, it goes right into our reservoir.”

according to the u.s. census bureau, newburgh’s population is mostly latino and african american. the epa has recognized that environmental issues disproportionately impact communities of color and that these communities do not receive the same protections that predominantly white areas do. on top of this, the centers for disease control and prevention (cdc) found that communities of color have been at a higher risk from covid-19 due to “long-standing systemic health and social inequities.” 

“there definitely is a trend. i think just the term ‘environmental justice community’ was coined because of the relationship between poverty, race, and contamination,” brown said. “when you go around the country, where does the coal ash go? where do all the really toxic end products of the american lifestyle go? they tend to go to the places where poor people live and where people are the least listened to.” 

to combat these issues, ncwp successfully advocated to expand blood testing for harmful chemicals by the new york state department of health and demanded that the information also be provided in spanish. before the pandemic, ncwp held in-person events where people would break bread and share information to be prepared when different government agencies like the department of defense held community meetings about pollution coming from the air base. ncwp also held watershed tours where people could go see how the streams running near big box stores like kohl’s and home depot carried trash into various water sources. 

now during the pandemic, the grassroots organization continues to work with colleagues like food & water watch to campaign against a number of issues such as preventing a power plant in newburgh that operates only a few days each year from becoming a fracked gas plant that would operate year-round. throughout new york, 150 elected officials, including members of the state senate and state assembly, signed a letter urging cuomo to stop the upgrade of danskammer generating station and prevent newburgh residents from being exposed to “the brunt of air pollution.” 

“right here, right now, this community cannot survive yet another source of pollution,” hollo said.

in addition to partnering with other organizations, ncwp also relies on social media and webinars to get the word out on the dangers of contaminated water and fossil fuel emissions. according to hollo, who runs ncwp’s social media accounts, there are pros and cons to strictly virtual advocacy. 

“not having that face to face interaction, not having something on paper, i think, has not been the best way to reach out to our communities of color,” she said. 

hollo went on to explain that many people in her community only speak spanish or french creole but because ncwp is a small volunteer-based grassroots organization with limited funding, they can’t afford instant translation for webinars and other online events.  

“i guess i’ll just say it’s a double-edged sword,” she said. “you may think you’re reaching, you know, hundreds of thousands of people and you are, but are you reaching all the people for whom this is the most important issue and for whom this is really a life threatening issue?”

despite these limitations, both brown and hollo have been astonished with how effectively social media has mobilized young people. 

“young people have created a different way of voicing their concerns and certainly the latinx community has definitely come out strong in newburgh against danskammer (power plant),” hollo said. 

she also noted that many of the older members of the community were concerned about their vulnerability to covid-19 and were unable to protest in person, creating a unique call to action. 

“(young people) had to carry the torch and they did it beautifully,” hollo said. 

one organization has used social media as not only a tool for change but as a way to create a network of young climate advocates. new york youth climate leaders (ny2cl) is a coalition of 70 individual groups across new york state, founded in november 2019. the leaders of the organization are either in their late teens or completing their first semester of college, while members across the state range from middle schoolers to college undergraduates. the coalition focuses on policy surrounding fossil fuels, renewable energy, health care, and the green new deal. 

according to social media director sophie campbell, ny2cl has taken advantage of the digital space by organizing virtual strikes, creating a social media campaign to support the new york fossil fuel divestment act, pushing petitions on multiple platforms, and encouraging people to call elected officials such as cuomo and new york state senate majority leader andrea stewart-cousins. the organization also created a podcast and hosts informational webinars with guest speakers and panels. 

“i think the biggest thing was figuring out how to do our events and actions virtually,” campbell said. “social media has really been the key to activism and just keeping the climate movement alive during the pandemic.” 

even though ny2cl has fully embraced online tools for activism, campbell recognizes the limitations of not being able to conduct business as usual in person. 

“climate anxiety is very real, especially in youth organizers, and taking away that socialization aspect makes it very difficult to keep going and keep fighting all the time,” she said. “but i think that, you know, we’re getting through it. and we’re finding ways to have more fun, engaging in activities, not just activism, because i think that with everyone doing school virtually, and being on zoom all day every day, people are less excited to get on the call for climate organizing.” 

to prevent members from feeling isolated or disengaged, campbell has incorporated more art and activities into her social media strategy. 

during earth week, ny2cl held a climate art challenge where people could post individual creations inspired by the environment. the organization also hosted a virtual open mic via instagram, launched the #hugsomethinggreen challenge and drew slogans with chalk about divesting from fossil fuels in front of stewart-cousins’ office.

“we’re working on a lot more kinds of artistic, creative projects for our social media, for our website, for engagement, because i think that art and activism is incredibly important to the climate movement, both for engagement and (because) it’s just such a good way to spread awareness.” 

despite the variety of strategies and individual obstacles, all three organizations agreed on the importance of continuing their work during the pandemic. 

“climate change is the greatest threat that humanity faces because now, more than ever, we need access to safe (and) clean food, air, and water,” said food & water watch’s eric weltman.