Water Voices

Water Voices logo by Rick Kilby of Kilby Creative
Water Voices logo by Rick Kilby of Kilby Creative

An Acclaimed Educational Speaker Series

The Ichetucknee Alliance, Inc., in original partnership with Our Santa Fe River, created the informational speaker series, Water Voices. Our goal was to expand the depth and breadth of the water conversation here in North Florida by featuring speakers who are not usually heard by public audiences to encourage discussion about subjects not usually covered in the local media.

Our original target audiences were elected officials and representatives in Alachua and Columbia counties, board members and members of the Ichetucknee Alliance and Our Santa Fe River, administrators and staff of the Suwannee River Water Management District and other water managers, business owners (including farmers) whose livelihoods depend on our waters, and the public.

What we found was that elected officials and representatives did not show up (we won’t speculate on the reasons, there could be many) and that there was minimal interest shown by water managers. Water Voices was popular, however, with our members and other people who are concerned about the fate of our rivers and springs; those people showed up in good numbers and were enthusiastic about the programs.

We designed the format to be more like a conversation than a presentation by a “talking head,” although presentations set the stage for discussion during a Q&A session with the presenter and the audience. We also allow time for one-on-one conversations at the end of the sessions.

Our goal was not only to explain problems but also to present ideas that could inspire brainstorming, creative thinking and further conversations in search of solutions.

The first event in Water Voices in 2015 featured Pegeen Hanrahan and Aliki Moncrief talking about “Amendment 1:  Need, Intent, and Implementation.”

The second Water Voices program featured Tom Swihart talking about “Florida’s Water Policy Toolkit.” (There was a glitch in video recording this one and the video starts midway into the presentation.)

The third Water Voices program featured a panel discussion on “Ethics, Faith, and Water:  A Confluence” on Monday, Sept. 14, 2015.

The fourth Water Voices program featured professional geologist Jim Gross discussing “Up & Down With the Floridan Aquifer”  on Feb. 29, 2016, at Florida Gateway College in Lake City.

The fifth Water Voices program featured attorneys Heather Culp Obara and Traci Deen discussing “Why Aren’t Florida’s Water Laws Protecting Florida’s Water?” on Monday, July 25, 2016, at the High Springs New Century Woman’s Club.

In Fall 2018, the sixth Water Voices program, “Clear Choices for Clean Water,” was held in two sessions, one in Alachua County and one in Columbia County.