{"id":15601,"date":"2025-11-20T22:05:01","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T05:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/water-justice-delivered-to-animas-river-via-durango-resolution\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T21:49:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:49:20","slug":"water-justice-delivered-to-animas-river-via-durango-resolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/water-justice-delivered-to-animas-river-via-durango-resolution\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Water justice\u2019 delivered to Animas River via Durango resolution"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Fort
Fort Lewis College students successfully convinced Durango City Council to support a resolution acknowledging river rights for the Animas River on Tuesday. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald file)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Fort Lewis College students successfully convinced Durango City Council to support a resolution acknowledging river rights for the Animas River on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Students of FLC professor Becky Clausen\u2019s Water Justice class described their success as \u201cinspirational,\u201d \u201cheartwarming\u201d and \u201cincredibly impactful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The students spent about three months researching, drafting a resolution and preparing for a presentation before City Council.<\/p>\n

Clause said her assignment \u2013 timed with the 10th anniversary of the 2015 Gold King Mine spill that drew international attention to Durango\u2019s river water quality \u2013 empowered students and exposed them to civic processes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe unanimous vote to approve the Rights of Animas River resolution is an example of college and community collaboration,\u201d she said. \u201cIt shows the power of experiential education and \u2018learning-by-doing\u2019 that transforms academic coursework into meaningful community impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

Student Jazlyn Quintana said the assignment \u2013 which Clausen described as a \u201ccommunity group research project\u201d \u2013 provokes thoughts about water rights and could encourage other communities to consider how to preserve their water sources.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is unbelievable in a way that we as a class were able to accomplish this, but I am grateful for all that I\u2019ve learned and that we accomplished our goal,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Riley Latus said the assignment pushed the class to work with \u201cdiverse worldviews, cultures, ideas and studies,\u201d and students\u2019 passion for \u201cenvironmental, cultural and water justice propelled our project to center stage of city hall and Durango.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clausen said the assignment included gauging the community\u2019s acceptance of \u201crights of nature\u201d concepts that natural ecosystems have a right to exist and to flourish, as described in the resolution passed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can feel overwhelming and depressing learning about all the disparities of the world,\u201d said student Hailey Chandler. \u201cThis 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Fort
Fort Lewis College students in Professor Becky Clausen\u2019s Water Justice class have spent about three months researching community sentiment, city of Durango policies and case law about rights of nature. City Council approved a resolution on Tuesday. (Christian Burney\/Durango Herald file)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Student Park Donnelly said it was \u201cdeeply poignant\u201d to participate in the class project.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

The resolution, she said, is just the first step, and she feels \u201cempowered\u201d and \u201cenergized\u201d to continue pushing for crucial change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis project was grounded in reciprocity,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is about recognizing the forces \u2013 both human and inhuman \u2013 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clausen said the assignment centered Indigenous knowledge that inherent relationships between people and nature exist, and that knowledge can guide a community\u2019s practices in how it relates to rivers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 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,\u201d she said. \u201cStudents 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Councilor Dave Woodruff, who introduced the resolution to City Council, said the project was a great process for college students.<\/p>\n

Councilor Kip Koso said he appreciated the acknowledgment of the city\u2019s and community\u2019s duty to protect the Animas River so that children have the same opportunity to enjoy the river as those that came before them.<\/p>\n

Mayor Gilda Yazzie said it is difficult to present before City Council \u2013 at public meeting \u2013 and she is proud of the students for their efforts.<\/p>\n

cburney@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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