Josefina Molina and other Seri Indians spoke with MTU researchers about water problems in their village.
Along the coast of the Sea of Cortez in Northern Mexico live a few hundred Seri Indians — the last surviving members of their tribe. In May 2006, researchers from Michigan Technological University (MTU) met with a group of Seri members as part of a USAID-funded partnership with Universidad de Sonora that tackled water and sanitation problems in the region.
“The interactions with the Seris were part of our effort to understand the roles of the many, incredibly varied stakeholders in water issues in Sonora,” says Dr. Alex Mayer, Director of MTU’s Center for Water & Society. “These interactions enabled us to include the knowledge and needs of these stakeholders in developing technical and policy solutions to the water problems facing the state.”
MTU’s involvement in the project began with a field engineering class that took on the design of a wastewater treatment system for the town of Rosario de Tesopaco. The design was submitted to the Mexican government for its approval and, after several roadblocks, construction of the wastewater treatment system began two years ago.
Photo: Dr. Alex Mayer