July Partner Highlight: Milwaukee Water Commons
Read more about the region-wide wins of our partners in our latest July newsletter. This month’s org highlight shows us how water can bridge racial divides in our cities, and what happens in municipal policymaking when a city comes together to envision a future for themselves.
Milwaukee Water Commons is a cross-city network that sparks connection, collaboration and broad community leadership on behalf of our common waters. They are driving a citywide conversation about what environmental justice should look like, how decisions should be made, and who has a voice.
“Part of what we do is to model Black and white leadership in a hyper-segregated city,” Kirsten Shead, co-executive director, said. “We advocate for intersectional environmentalism, which identifies the ways that injustices to marginalized communities and to the earth are interconnected. “
Brenda Coley, co-executive director, said, “Many people of color, especially Black people, have disengaged from water – through no fault of their own. We work in solidarity to bring them back to water, which is their home. Water connects us. We heal the water and the water heals us.”
This year marks the tenth anniversary of We Are Water, a beachfront community celebration of the city’s common waters hosted by Milwaukee Water Commons at the newly restored McKinley Beach on Sunday, August 11, from 5-9 pm. Everyone is encouraged to join in the multicultural festivities featuring music, dancing, games, a community art installation at dusk, and special guests.
Over the years, the prolific water stewardship work of Milwaukee Water Commons led to the development of the Water City Agenda, a community-defined vision for what Milwaukee would look like as a model water city, based on the responses of 1,300 residents. Through an inclusive process, they developed six core initiatives to guide their work: green infrastructure, water quality, blue green jobs, arts and culture, education and recreation, and drinking water. With these priorities in mind, their work spans across statewide water policy advocacy and projects, as well as annual gatherings, celebrations, and collective learning opportunities such as Water School, a year-long program that engages city residents in water stewardship, learning, and project development, and Branch Out Milwaukee, a campaign that maximizes the benefits of Milwaukee's tree canopy by focusing on equity, public health, environmental health, climate resilience, and workforce development.
In the spring, we also welcomed Milwaukee Water Commons Co-Executive Director Brenda Coley to our Midwest Environmental Justice Network Leadership Team! Check out our announcement here and please join us in welcoming her onboard. 👏👏