We are committed to furthering the role of racial and social justice within the water/wastewater industry. To do so, the Pacific Northwest Clean Water Association (PNCWA) has taken the step to create the Racial & Social Justice Subcommittee (RSJ) under the Member Services Committee (MSC) to empower PNCWA membership by providing education and resources, collaborating with impacted communities, and advocating for enduring racial and social justice in water resource organizations, programs, and projects that bring about lasting change. The inaugural Chair, Rob Lee, and Vice Chair, Brittany Downing, have volunteered to lead this subcommittee’s effort in pursuing 5 main goals:

1. Focus on furthering the membership’s education on RSJ issues by providing an optional book club and quarterly LinkedIn posts with articles and additional resources related to RSJ.
2. Engage and collaborate with other organizations and groups that are leaders in this effort to leverage ongoing studies, share ideas, and further community engagement.
3. Partner with MSC and the Students and Young Professionals (S&YP) committees to focus on outreach to underrepresented communities and to provide mentorship opportunities.
4. In the long-term, the subcommittee will take on a project that provides resources and leadership opportunities for impacted communities to improve their water/wastewater systems; and
5. Partner with the Government Affairs Committee to potentially influence legislation.

Together, we can learn, grow, and make a real, lasting change in our community. If you're interested in joining the subcommittee, please contact Rob Lee.

On July 10, the Member Services Committee kicked off the first meeting for the Racial and Social Justice Subcommittee. The purpose of this group is to provide education and leadership opportunities for PNCWA members to advance and promote racial and social justice into water resources organizations, programs, projects, and the impacted communities in our region. Contact the Subcommittee Chair Rob Lee if you're interested in joining. We need your voice!

The PNCWA board issued a statement last week calling on PNCWA members to “commit time to be educated, to increase your understanding, and to promote ideas and programs that eliminate structural racism in our organization, region, and the communities we serve.”  In follow up to that message, here are some actions that PNCWA has been and will continue to take promote diversity and social and racial justice.

Our Members Services Committee has a goal for the PNCWA membership and the water industry to represent the communities we serve. We recognize that overall, the water industry lacks racial and gender diversity that truly mimics and represents our communities and we want to change that. At our 2019 PNCWA conference in Portland, 13% of attendees were people of color (PNCWA conference Survey data) compared to the population of Oregon, which is composed of 25% people of color (US census data). Similarly, less than 20% of the conference attendees were women. We strive to increase the diversity of both our membership and our leadership. We have therefore developed a goal to increase diversity in membership by 2025 with a targets to increase membership of women, people of color, and young professionals.

Table 1: PNCWA current and target demographics. Target demographics are defined for new joining members.

“Starting the Women in Water group in Boise means creating a space where women can start a connection with people they might never have met…” 

The Boise Women of Water event took place on December 3, 2019, and all 40 attendees are looking forward to the next event! Emily O’Morrow, Brown and Caldwell, and Allison Hornak, HDR, helped organize the event and each has deeply personal reasons for bringing together women from across the industry to network and learn from one another. Emily credited her motivation to her career and being directly impacted by other women she met in the industry who instrumentally helped her along the way. She wanted to give other women the opportunity to be in a supportive environment as well. Allison worked as the only woman in a new company in the water sector and often felt isolated in her new role. After meeting another woman at a PNCWA networking event and striking up a lasting friendship, she realized the value that these connections can create and also wanted to open the door for other women to have similar experiences. 

In 2019, the Pacific Northwest Clean Water Association (PNCWA) launched a program called InFLOW (Introducing Future Leaders to Opportunities in Water): an initiative that strives to identify promising students and young professionals from underrepresented groups who are interested in careers in the water industry. 

In 2020, this initiative continues to identify and introduce these students and young professionals to careers in the water industry. Building off the successes and the lessons learned from the first year of the program, PNCWA is continuing in its mission to change the face of the water industry and help build a more diverse and inclusive world. The program will engage these underrepresented groups in the form of a sponsorship to attend the PNCWA 2020 Annual Conference, taking place in Spokane, Washington, September 13-16, 2020. 

PNCWA celebrated a special milestone at the 2019 conference: the InFLOW cohort attended for the first time.  InFLOW is a scholarship program developed by WEF that invites students from underserved minority groups to attend WEFTEC for free. The PNCWA InFLOW effort was spearheaded by Member Services Chair, Brittany Burch, with support from several other members of PNCWA leadership including Steven Drangsholt, Kristi Steiner, Dick Finger, and Brittany Park. Brittany Burch was inspired by the stories and successes already coming from WEF’s InFLOW program and wanted to create the same opportunity for PNCWA students.

“People who work in water are passionate. It shows in our work, on our faces, and in our interactions. Many of us attend conferences to be inspired, and sharing this inspiration with the InFLOW group is so critical to the long term success of the program. The support from our PNCWA members made that part easy,” said Burch. By creating a regional program, PNCWA has opened up opportunities for students in the Pacific Northwest who may not have had exposure to the water sector before. PNCWA InFLOW helps pique students’ interest in the water sector and sets students up with networking opportunities to increase their potential for employment and long-term success.

The PNCWA Annual Member Survey has been designed to provide feedback to the Board of Directors and Committees on how effective our organization has been at meeting the professional needs of our membership. The information contained in the surveys submitted will be used to determine PNCWA success in meeting it's strategic plan goals, adjust the plan if necessary, and provide feedback to the board and committee chairs to help identify what the organization is doing well as well as proactive suggestions for areas that may need a little more attention or improvement.

It only takes a few minutes: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2019PNCWAmembership-survey

The PNCWA Annual Member Survey has been designed to provide feedback to the Board of Directors and Committees on how effective our organization has been at meeting the professional needs of our membership. The information contained in the surveys submitted will be used to determine PNCWA success in meeting it's strategic plan goals, adjust the plan if necessary, and provide feedback to the board and committee chairs to help identify what the organization is doing well as well as proactive suggestions for areas that may need a little more attention or improvement.

It only take a few minutes: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PNCWAmemberSurvey2018.