66: The Fundamental Value of Infusing Art and Culture into the Water Industry

Radhika Fox is the Chief Executive Officer of the US Water Alliance, a national nonprofit organization advancing policies and programs that build a sustainable water future for all. Radhika is a widely-recognized thought leader on complex water issues, from equity in water to investing in our nation’s water infrastructure. With more than 20 years of experience in developing policies, programs, and issue-based advocacy campaigns, Radhika is a sought-after public speaker and has been interviewed by local, regional, and national media outlets on a wide range of water issues. Previously, Radhika directed the policy and government affairs agenda for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which is responsible for providing 24/7 water, wastewater, and municipal power services to 2.6 million Bay Area residents. She also served as the Federal Policy Director at PolicyLink, where she coordinated the organization’s policy agenda on a wide range of issues, including infrastructure investment, transportation, sustainable communities, economic inclusion, and workforce development.

Top Takeaways

1. Art begins a conversation about water that facts and figures alone cannot.
2. Partnering with the artists and cultural practitioners in your community creates new tools to engage the community, new ways to envision and design our water systems and a new lens through which our industry’s technical experts can innovate the future of water.
3. These partnerships create an entry point for the people in your community that are passionate about helping create positive behavior change.

Resources:

What did Stephanie mean by coming in like Jason Momoa? This. #FiredUp

Advancing One Water Through Arts and Culture: A Blueprint for Action

One Water Summit 2019

Dare to Lead by Brene Brown

Sponsor:

This episode is powered by Moonshot Missions, the non-profit organization seeking to disrupt the current approach to delivering improvement to water systems. Led by seasoned and skilled experts, Moonshot Missions designs replicable models that help utilities overcome the challenges they face in order to move forward. Moonshot can help you assess your system, select solutions from a pre-vetted menu of projects, plus develop innovative financing approaches. Collaborate with other leaders to work together, develop tailored mission plans and share lessons learned. Together you can build water systems that work more efficiently and effectively to protect and provide for the residents you serve, while also saving your customers money.

If you’d like to learn more or even share your own experience that might be helpful for a struggling utility to adopt and start on a positive path, visit moonshotmissions.org or email george@moonshotmissions.org.”

Please consider rating the podcast with 5 stars and leaving a one- or two-sentence review in iTunes or on Stitcher.  This helps tremendously in bringing the podcast to the attention of others. We give a shoutout to everyone who rates the podcast with 5 stars in future episodes.

Give us some love on Twitter by tagging us @THE_H2duO or by using the #WaterInRealLifePodcast

If you know someone you think would benefit, please spread the word by using the share buttons on this page.

Thank you for sharing some of your time with us. We know how precious those minutes are. Share your story, you never know who needs to hear it and remember, “Those who tell the stories, rule the world.”