The unprecedented decline of the Colorado River has precipitated a crisis affecting the people and ecology that rely on this vital water source. While recent levels of rain- and snowfall have provided a temporary respite, addressing the causes and consequences of sustained reductions in the Colorado River’s flow, coupled with climate uncertainties, requires long-term cooperation and collaboration among numerous stakeholders including governments, agriculture, sustainability advocates and critical infrastructure managers. To this end, this colloquium convenes representatives from diverse backgrounds in a thoughtful discourse on these enduring and pressing challenges.

• Date: 9/12/23
• Time: 12:00pm
• Address: Virtual webinar held on Zoom, click on RSVP to register

Bill Hasencamp
Manager of Colorado River Resources, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

Bill Hasencamp is the Manager of Colorado River Resources for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, where he develops and manages water supply programs to augment Metropolitan’s Colorado River supplies. He has been with Metropolitan for 22 years, negotiating transfer agreements with irrigations districts, exchange agreements, and funding new water supply projects to augment Metropolitan’s Colorado River Supplies. Bill is one of California’s representatives to the Colorado River Salinity Control Forum. Bill’s hobbies include long distance bicycle touring, which led him on a three-month bicycle ride across the United States.

Dr. Christy Wyckoff
Owner-Operator of Redwing Ranch

Dr. Christy Wyckoff is the owner-operator of Redwing Ranch, a regenerative cattle ranch in Southern Colorado on the eastern slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. As a wildlife ecologist, Christy’s career has focused on wildlife conservation and ecological land management, skills that she is now using to move Redwing Ranch from conventional to regenerative grazing practices. Prior to her move back to Colorado in 2022, Christy was the Deputy Director of the Santa Lucia Conservancy, in Carmel, California, where she led the wildlife research, prescribed-fire and community-fire-preparation programs. She also supervised the land management program which included the Conservancy’s novel conservation cattle grazing program where cattle were the primary tool for endangered species habitat restoration and building landscape resilience. Christy received her BS in Biology from Stanford University, ‘02, chased feral pigs at Texas A&M University-Kingsville for her MS, ‘07, and delved into the molecular world of chronic wasting disease in elk at Colorado State University for her PhD, ‘13.

Water is the lifeblood of agriculture and is becoming an ever more limited resource with the mega drought, climate change, and shifting state policies and administration of water rights in Colorado. Without predicable rainfall or access to irrigation water ranchers and farmers have had to learn to operate with less water, requiring new frameworks and changing paradigms for an ever dryer West.

Brian Richter
President of Sustainable Waters

Brian Richter has been a global leader in water science and conservation for more than 30 years. He is the president of Sustainable Waters, a global organization focused on water scarcity challenges, where he promotes sustainable water use and management with governments, corporations, universities, and local communities. Brian also serves as a Senior Freshwater Fellow at the World Wildlife Fund. He previously served as Director of the Global Water Program of The Nature Conservancy. Brian has consulted on more than 170 water projects worldwide. He serves as a water advisor to some of the world’s largest corporations, investment banks, and the United Nations, and has testified before the U.S. Congress on multiple occasions.Brian has developed scientific tools and methods to support river protection and restoration efforts, including the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration software used by water managers and scientists worldwide. Brian was featured in a BBC documentary with David Attenborough on “How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth?” He has published many scientific papers on the importance of ecologically sustainable water management in international journals. He co-authored a book with Sandra Postel entitled Rivers for Life: Managing Water for People and Nature. His latest book, Chasing Water: A Guide for Moving from Scarcity to Sustainability, has now been published in five languages.

Ag Kawamura
Founding Co-chair of Solutions from the Land

A.G. Kawamura is a third generation produce grower and shipper from Orange
County, California. From 2003 to 2010 he served as the Secretary of the California
Department of Food and Agriculture. He is founding co-chair of Solutions from the
Land (solutionsfromtheland.org), a nationally recognized non-profit that is
developing innovative and sustainable climate smart collaborations for 21st century
agriculture. He serves on multiple boards and advisory committees including the
UNEP Farmers Major Group Facilitators Committee; Farm Foundation Board;
Western Growers Board and former Chair; Ag Advisory Committee for the Chicago
Council; Bipartisan Policy Center, Ag & Forestry task force; Southern California
Water Coalition, Executive Committee.

For over 45 years Mr. Kawamura has pursued a lifelong goal to work towards an
end to hunger and malnutrition. Locally, he is founding chair of Solutions For Urban
Ag (SFUA.org) and serves on the Orange County Farm Bureau Board. He has worked
closely with Regional Food Banks and stakeholders to create dynamic urban ag
projects that focus on nutrition, hunger, education and advanced food systems. As a
progressive farmer, Mr. Kawamura has a lifetime of experience working within the
shrinking rural and urban boundaries of Southern California. A.G. graduated with a
BA from UC Berkeley and was a member of Class XX of the Calif. Ag Leadership
Program.