Fort Lewis College students successfully convinced Durango City Council to support a resolution acknowledging river rights for the Animas River on Tuesday.
Students of FLC professor Becky Clausen’s Water Justice class described their success as “inspirational,” “heartwarming” and “incredibly impactful.”
The students spent about three months researching, drafting a resolution and preparing for a presentation before City Council.
Clause said her assignment – timed with the 10th anniversary of the 2015 Gold King Mine spill that drew international attention to Durango’s river water quality – empowered students and exposed them to civic processes.
“The unanimous vote to approve the Rights of Animas River resolution is an example of college and community collaboration,” she said. “It shows the power of experiential education and ‘learning-by-doing’ that transforms academic coursework into meaningful community impact.”
Student Jazlyn Quintana said the assignment – which Clausen described as a “community group research project” – provokes thoughts about water rights and could encourage other communities to consider how to preserve their water sources.
“It is unbelievable in a way that we as a class were able to accomplish this, but I am grateful for all that I’ve learned and that we accomplished our goal,” she said.
She said case studies of other U.S. and Colorado communities granting their rivers and bodies of water legal rights drove the resolution home on Tuesday.
Riley Latus said the assignment pushed the class to work with “diverse worldviews, cultures, ideas and studies,” and students’ passion for “environmental, cultural and water justice propelled our project to center stage of city hall and Durango.”
Clausen said the assignment included gauging the community’s acceptance of “rights of nature” concepts that natural ecosystems have a right to exist and to flourish, as described in the resolution passed on Tuesday.
“It can feel overwhelming and depressing learning about all the disparities of the world,” said student Hailey Chandler. “This Water Justice movement for the Animas River has brought me hope and has inspired me to think creatively. Everyone is connected to water. We are water protectors.”
Student Park Donnelly said it was “deeply poignant” to participate in the class project.
She said she was optimistic about the Animas River water justice resolution passing, but she was struck by the council voting unanimously in its favor.
The resolution, she said, is just the first step, and she feels “empowered” and “energized” to continue pushing for crucial change.
“This project was grounded in reciprocity,” she said. “It is about recognizing the forces – both human and inhuman – that contribute to our well-being. We want to recognize the immensely positive role of the Animas River in our community and reciprocate the respect she gives us. This resolution is the initial effort toward honoring and protecting the water body that fills us and all of Durango.”
Clausen said the assignment centered Indigenous knowledge that inherent relationships between people and nature exist, and that knowledge can guide a community’s practices in how it relates to rivers.
“The project shows the power of a diverse group of people collaborating together on an issue they care about for the greater good of our community,” she said. “Students were from a range of different majors, represent diverse cultural backgrounds, and have varying life experiences. And because of all these differences they could bring their own unique skills, knowledge and passions to the table to contribute to the larger mission of recognizing the inherent rights of our river.”
Councilor Dave Woodruff, who introduced the resolution to City Council, said the project was a great process for college students.
Councilor Kip Koso said he appreciated the acknowledgment of the city’s and community’s duty to protect the Animas River so that children have the same opportunity to enjoy the river as those that came before them.
Mayor Gilda Yazzie said it is difficult to present before City Council – at public meeting – and she is proud of the students for their efforts.
cburney@durangoherald.com
