We Are Water -Community Perspectives at the Center Of Designing Informal STEM Education Experiences About Water
Journal Article
Overview
abstract
Rural, Indigenous, and Latinx communities in the Southwest region of the; U.S. share present and future concerns about drought and water; availability as these communities face low and inconsistent; precipitation. Using a collaborative process, We are Water has designed; informal STEM programs and a traveling exhibit for tribal and rural; libraries to create opportunities for individuals and families to engage; in conversations about their personal and community connections to; water. The decision to use a collaborative design process sought to; respect and honor the diversity of voices in these communities by; enabling them to express their experiences with water in their own words; and see their perspectives incorporated in the ensuing programs and; exhibit. As an important Drst step, the project conducted a needs; assessment, which invited communities to share their perspectives and; stories through surveys and interviews. As the COVID-19 pandemic; unfolded our project team adjusted its approach to ensure the voices of; those hardest hit by the pandemic, Indigenous and Latinx communities,; were heard. Instead of in-person relationship building as initially; planned, the project team pivoted toward a snowball approach to collect; one-on-one phone interviews. Findings from surveys and community; interviews showed water conservation, water access, water availability,; and water quality were common priorities. This project shows how a; collaborative process paired with evaluation can be used as tools for; community participation for informed decision making in the design of; informal educational experiences.
