Across the country, communities face mounting threats to their water security and race is the strongest predictor of water access. Increased climate change-related flooding, sea-level rise, and drought threaten people's homes, lives, and the ecosystems they rely upon. Decades of structural racism, infrastructure underinvestment, and unjust policies have rendered low income, rural, and communities of color at the forefront of these issues. The Covid-19 pandemic further exacerbated these intersectional challenges, calling particular attention to the need for water assistance, water affordability, infrastructure upgrades, and climate action. 

Since 2018, the WECR Caucus has strengthened connections between frontline communities, allies, and decision-makers to address these challenges through national coordination, in-person convenings, priority workgroups, and free trainings and resources. Find out more about how we approach this work and see below for details on our specific efforts.

Where We Meet

National Calls
The WECR Caucus holds quarterly national calls for core members, allies, and supporters. Calls are organized by PolicyLink, with guidance from the WECR Steering Committee, to provide updates, share priorities, and work together to advance our issues. National calls offer opportunities for emerging leaders to design and lead different sections of the agenda, flexing their speaking, presentation, and facilitation skills. Members also learn from one another’s work, sharing information and resources.

In-Person Convenings
We prioritize space for reconnecting, deepening relationships, celebrating our water journeys, and building shared momentum through in-person convenings. Convenings take place in a different location each year, providing connection to on-the-ground movements through local co-hosts, site visits, panels, and workshops. Read more:

Resource Distribution
Each year, PolicyLink mobilizes resources to support on-the-ground work by WECR Caucus members. Funds support individual organizations, projects, and leadership development to further shared water equity and climate resilience goals. Funds are distributed through Alignment & Movement Building Grants, Federal Policy Engagement Grants, and WECR Delegation Travel Scholarships. Learn more and meet our grant recipients.

Workgroups
Caucus members work together to develop knowledge, build capacity, and strategize through workgroups. Workgroups meet regularly to dig deeper on particular topics or regional policy priorities. Workgroups prioritize space for Core Members, centering the priorities and solutions of frontline communities across the country. Allies may join relevant working groups to support core member priorities. Current workgroups include:

  • Climate Justice (monthly) — The Climate Justice Workgroup, co-anchored by Taproot Earth and PolicyLink meets monthly as a peer learning space to discuss the intersection of water and climate, share ongoing work, and elevate community-oriented solutions towards a just transition. This year, the workgroup is diving into political education and peer dialogues on three major topics–Water/Land Back, False Solutions, and Disaster Recovery & Mitigation–and then will be developing policy priorities to roll into the Caucus’ federal advocacy.

  • Federal Advocacy (monthly) — The Federal Policy Workgroup, anchored by PolicyLink, meets once per month to provide space for federal training, strategy, and shared WECR member priorities (beyond water affordability) to build into our formal WECR federal policy agenda.

  • Narrative Change (quarterly) — The Narrative Change Workgroup brings together advocates, cultural bearers, storytellers, and communicators to deepen connections with one another, explore our relationships with water, and shape alternative narratives around water and climate to influence solutions and policies that protect our planet and better serve impacted communities.

  • Southern Regional (quarterly) — The Southern regional workgroup, co-anchored by Bayou City Waterkeeper and The Water Collaborative of New Orleans, is a coalition that focuses on policy priorities and organizational support for Southern-based local and regional water-focused organizations that advocate for and work with communities of color, low-income communities, and frontline communities in the South.

  • Western Regional (monthly) — The Western Regional Water Justice Workgroup, co-anchored by Community Water Center, is working towards building a shared theory of change and deepening our connections and alignment to strengthen power building in the region.

  • Water Affordability (monthly) — The Water Affordability Workgroup, anchored by PolicyLink and supported by Max Gomberg, meets once per month to focus on the development of a unified WECR Caucus policy framework and priorities for addressing the growing national water affordability crisis.