Santa Barbara County Nonprofits Co-host Artist Residencies Focused on Water Justice
Additional photos with credits can be found here.
New Cuyama, California — Since the beginning of 2025, Blue Sky Center, in collaboration with Quail Springs, is hosting artists to engage the residents of the Cuyama Valley on issues of groundwater and water justice that directly affect their lives. Artists are creating fun, all-ages, inclusive activities and events, working directly with the 1,100 residents of the agricultural Cuyama Valley.
“The Cuyama Water Justice Fellowship uplifts the voices and lived experiences of rural residents who have long been excluded from water decision-making. Through art, storytelling, and shared creativity, we’re building power and deepening our collective connection to the land and each other. At Quail Springs, we believe this kind of community-rooted engagement is essential for a just and sustainable water future.”
— Blaine Morris, Executive Director, Quail Springs
The 2025 Cuyama Water Justice Fellowship is part of the larger project “Building the Cuyama Valley Coalition of Water Stewards” led by Quail Springs, supported by Blue Sky Center. This project aims to involve and engage the residents of the Cuyama Valley on conversations and advocacy related to the critical issue of water use and sustainability. The Cuyama Valley is a severely disadvantaged, hyper-rural, high desert community. The Cuyama Basin is “critically overdrafted” according to the Department of Water Resources. Persistent and historic lowering of groundwater levels in the Cuyama Valley has been documented by the U.S. Geological Service. Groundwater is the only source of water in this valley–for agriculture as well as domestic drinking water.
Funding for these fellowships is provided by the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) through the California Environmental Justice Action Grants program. A complete list of all California Environmental Justice Action Grants awardees can be found on the CalEPA website here.
The 2025 Cuyama Water Justice Fellowship commenced in January with writer, oral historian, audio producer, and goat farmer, Rae Garringer. Based in southeastern West Virginia, Rae is resolutely committed to rural people and places, and they believe deeply in the power of documentary work made by and for rural communities. During their time in the Cuyama Valley, Rae interviewed Cuyama residents about their relationship with the Valley’s water crisis. These recorded testimonies have been edited together into a podcast episode that will air May 7th, 2025, on Rae’s podcast “Country Queers.”
March 2025 brought documentary filmmaking team Sean Huntley and Alex Brown as the next round of Cuyama Water Justice Fellows. Based in Los Angeles, Huntley and Brown turn a lens on critical issues in their lifelong home of California. While in Cuyama, Sean and Alex documented the stories of Cuyama residents and their relationships to water. These stories will be edited together into a short documentary that will be released later this year at a community watch party and online.
Ash Hanson and Alex Barreto-Hathaway, of PlaceBase Productions, will be the third artist team participating in the Water Justice Fellowship. Arriving in May, the duo will organize a community play and parade about water in the Cuyama Valley. Blue Sky Center has previously worked with PlaceBase to host community theater programs, such as the successful 2022 project Vecino a Vecino and community-wide play Superbloom! and the popular 2024 after school youth program “Cuyama Drama Club.”
About Blue Sky Center
Blue Sky Center is building models for resilient, thriving, and inclusive rural economies in the Cuyama Valley. As a place-based nonprofit organization, our creative team prioritizes projects and collaborations that celebrate the abundance of Cuyama. Learn about Blue Sky Center at www.blueskycenter.org.
About Quail Springs
Quail Springs is a leader in water advocacy and community education. Quail Springs has a strong history working with artists, teachers, students and the local community. They are developing water and land stewards from local residents of all ages, providing education and practical training in water conservation and sustainable agriculture. Learn more about Quail Springs at www.quailsprings.org.
For more information, please contact Jack Forinash, Blue Sky Center Executive Director 661-413-3005 | jack@blueskycenter.org
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