River Network believes all people have a right to clean and safe water, and the right to feel safe everywhere. We are committed to inclusion as one of our core values and to promoting a sense of belonging for all, regardless of race.

We recognize that our own work on water equity is but one piece of a larger and unjust national puzzle and that inequity in natural resources is one of many faced by Black, Indigenous, and communities of color. We also recognize that those same communities are leading the movement for equity in the outdoors and beyond, and we are honored to support and learn from the work of groups like Outdoor Afro, Latino Outdoors, and so many others who are working to ensure our natural spaces are safe, welcoming, and can be enjoyed by all. We encourage all of our partners – both individuals and organizations – to join us in learning to recognize and to challenge the ways in which racism, inequality, and privilege intersect with our work in conservation. We invite dialogue with others working on these issues to seek guidance and develop collaborations. We also commit to sharing  resources that help us all be catalysts and partners in building a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive movement for our nation’s waters.

On this page you’ll find these resources, across a variety of sub-topics. This page is a living, evolving resource that is updated regularly.

Have a resource you’d like to share with the network? Let us know.

Table of Contents

White Privilege & Racial Equity

• “75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice,” by Corinne Shutack on Medium
• Addressing Racial Equity video series from Jennifer Arnold and Darryl Haddock for the Urban Waters Learning Network
• Anti-Racism Resources, Google Doc compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein
• “The Anti-Racist Reading List” by Brea Baker in Elle
• “Diversity Toolkit: A Guide to Discussing Identity, Power and Privilege” from MSW@USC
• Race Class Narrative Message Checklist by Race Class Narrative Action
• “Paying Attention to White Culture and Privilege: A Missing Link to Advancing Racial Equity,” by Gita Gulati-Partee and Maggie Potapchuk via racialequitytools.org
• “Systemic Racism Explained” from act.tv
• “White people assume niceness is the answer to racial inequality. It’s not.” by Robin DiAngelo in The Guardian
• “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack,” by Peggy McIntosh via racialequitytools.org
• White Supremacy Culture website by Tema Okun
• Whites for Racial Equity

Conservation, Environmentalism, & Race

• Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoor, by Carolyn Finney (find at your local bookstore or from one of the Black-owned bookstores found here and here)
• “Challenging the Narrative and Amplifying Voices: Resources for Education and Inclusivity in the Outdoor Industry,” from The Trek
• “‘Environmentalist’ Doesn’t Just Mean White and Wealthy,” by Linda Poon in City Lab
• “Environmentalism’s Racist History,” by Jedediah Purdy in The New Yorker
• An Indigenous People’s History of the United States, by Roxanne Dubar Ortiz (find at your local bookstore or from one of the Black-owned bookstores found here and here)
• “I’m a black climate expert. Racism derails our efforts to save the planet.” by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson in The Washington Post
• Intersectional Environmentalist
• Leaking Talent: How People of Color are Pushed Out of Environmental Organizations report from Green 2.0
• “The Melanin Base Camp Guide to Outdoor Allyship,” by Danielle Williams
• “Weaving the Strands Together” Case Studies in Inclusive and Equitable Landscape Conservation,” report by Network for Landscape Conservation
• Whiteness in the Outdoors, a compiled guide by Pattie Gonia and others

Organizational EDI

• 7 Liberatory Signs that Made Me Apply for My Job, Michelle Dominguez (2022) on Community Centric Fundraising
• Awake to Woke to Work: Building a Race Equity Culture, report from Equity in the Center
• “Can Anybody Hear Me? How White Nonprofit Writing Standards Erase BIPOC Voices – and Why That is Definitely Not Ok,” by Yolanda Contreras
• “DEI Efforts Within Nonprofits Lag in Practice”, by The NonProfit Times
• DEI: Holding Ourselves and Each Other Accountable, webinar from Training Resources for the Environmental Community
  
• DEIJ Guide from Choose Clean Water Coalition
• DEIJ Toolkit for Organizations from Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed
• Diversifying the Water Workforce, Value of Water Campaign (includes communications tools for recruiting new employees – in Spanish and English)
• Equity Assessment Tool, a working draft by River Network
• The Ethical Storyteller’s Academy, provides training and workshops focused on accessibility and inclusivity
• Facilitation as a Practice for Equity, Inclusion, and Power-Sharing, anti-racist facilitation training by BeTheChange
• “Four Ways White Supremacy Culture Hinders J.E.D.I. Progress,” by Marcelo Bonta on J.E.D.I. Heart
• “Have nonprofit and philanthropy become the “white moderate” that Dr. King warned us about?” by Vu Le on Nonprofit AF
• “How to Integrate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Into Everyday Operations,” by Maria Hernandez on The Bridgespan Group
• Organizational DEI Part 1 and Part 2, webinars from Avarna Group and River Network
• “Recruiting for Board Diversity – Without Disrespecting People of Color,” by Jim Taylor
• “So You Want to Hire an Equity Consultant: A Guide for Leaders and Organizations,” by Kerrien Suarez with other contributors
• Training and consultation by AORTA (Anti-Oppression Resource and Training Alliance)
• Water Savvy Solutions, offers justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion consulting service and hosts the bi-weekly podcast Breaking Green Ceilings that “amplifies the voices of environmentalists from historically underheard communities including Disabled, Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, Latinx and people of color.”
• White Supremacy Culture, by Tema Okun via Catalyst Project
• Whiteness at Work, organizational training in intersectional race equity work
• Words to Avoid – 2023 Edition by Big Duck: Smart Communications for Nonprofits

 Becoming an Ally

• “15 Ways to Strengthen Anti-Racist Practice,” by Catalyst Project
• Creating Safe Spaces Roundtable 1, Roundtable 2, National Wildlife
• Honor Native Land: A Guide and Call to Acknowledgement, from US Department of Arts and Culture
• “How You Can Be an Ally Outdoors,” by Neel Dhanesha, Audubon Magazine
• Pronouns and Their Importance from mypronouns.org
• White Folks Workbook, by Anti-Racism Every Day
• White Men & the Journey Towards Anti-Racism 12-part podcast series by Work Shouldn’t Suck (includes audio and transcripts)

The Intersection of Water & Equity

• Closing the Water Access Gap in the United States: A National Action Plan, from US Water Alliance and DigDeep
• Draining: The Economic Impact of America’s Hidden Water Crisis, a study from DigDeep (2022)
• EPA’s Role in Addressing the Urgent Water Infrastructure Needs of Environmental Justice Communities, from National Environmental Justice Advisory Council
• Intersectional Impacts of Environmental Racism in the Delaware River Watershed, Watershed Racial Justice Initiative, NJ LCV
• Mapping Water and Equity Considerations- Federal and State Tools, blog by River Network (2022)
• Some still don’t have a reliable water source near the headwaters of the Colorado River, news article by Stephanie Maltarich
• Threats on Tap: Widespread Violations Highlight Need for Investment in Water Infrastructure and Protections, from National Resources Defense Council
• “Turning the tide toward equity: making federal flood programs work for low-income people” by American Flood Coalition on Medium
• WATER/COLOR: A Study of Race and the Water Affordability Crisis in America’s Cities, by the Thurgood Marshall Institute at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
• Water and Equity Mapping Tools, River Network
• Watered Down Justice, from National Resources Defense Council, Coming Clean, and Environmental Justice Health Alliance

Other Resources

• Anti-Racism Daily, newsletter featuring various authors
• The BIPOC Project
• Become a Good Ancestor, workshops, courses, book club, and podcast focused on “personal growth and collective change through BIPOC teachings”, founded by Layla Saad
• Call the Halls Guide by Emily Ellsworth
• The Communications Network
• The Great Unlearn
• “Healing Resources for BIPOC Organizers & Allies Taking Action for Black Lives” by Irresistible on Medium
• Mississippi River Network’s Anti-Racism Resources Hub
• Native Knowledge 360º, recorded sessions by the National Museum of the American Indian.
• Police Budget Breakdown from Action Center on Race and the Economy
• Project Bias’s Implicit Association Test
• “Understanding Micro Aggressions” video by Fusion Comedy
• The Winters Group

To download this page as a PDF, click the Resource File link below. Last updated February 27, 2023.