Unit 4: The Water Wars of Cochabamba, Bolivia

Unit 4 activities support the module goals of being able to articulate the principles of environmental justice as they relate to examples of water scarcity and access in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and proposing potential solutions to inequitable access to clean water based on principles of the hydrologic cycle. The specific learning objectives for this unit align with the World Readiness Standards for Learning Languages as follows:

• Communication:
  • Interpersonal Communication: Spanish language learners interact and negotiate meaning in spoken conversations to share information, reactions, and opinions about the potential trade-offs of various models for supplying water to a community.
  • Interpretive Communication: Spanish language learners understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed regarding rain shadows and their relationship to the water cycle.
• Cultures:
  • Relating Cultural Practices to Perspectives: Spanish language learners use the language to investigate, explain, and reflect on the relationship between the practices and perspectives of Cochabamba communities as they relate to water resources.
• Connections:
  
  • Making Connections: Spanish language learners build, reinforce, and expand their knowledge of other disciplines while using Spanish to develop critical thinking. As part of this, learners will be able to:
     
    • Use the hydrologic cycle to explain why some populations lack access to a reasonable supply of fresh water.
    • Identify factors that contributed to the Water Wars in Cochabamba, Bolivia, in 2000.
• Acquiring Information and Diverse Perspectives: Spanish language learners access and evaluate information from an interview in Spanish with Oscar Olivera, an important leader in the Cochabamba water wars.

This unit may be used for one day of instruction in an intermediate-level Spanish class. The plan is for a 50-minute class, but it can be modified to fit various schedules. Although the instructions below include both Spanish and English, the lesson is designed to be conducted entirely in Spanish. The unit communicates the critical need for access to freshwater by people and the tradeoffs of various models of water supply within a community. It helps students comprehend water quality access issues within the political, economic, and cultural context of Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Unit 4 files:

• Unit 4 Google Earth student activity (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 1.7MB Jul16 24) and answer key (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 2.4MB Jul16 24)
• Unit 4 For instructors: Text, images, and links for Cochabamba Google Earth activity (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 2.2MB Jul30 24)
• Unit 4 Google Earth (KMZ) file (will launch Google Earth): La mujer y el agua - Cochabamba, Bolivia (KMLFile 36kB Jul30 24)
• Unit 4 PowerPoint images Rain shadow in Cochabamba, Bolivia (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 2.4MB May18 16)

PRE-CLASS ACTIVITY

Prior to class, email or make available the kmz file for La mujer y el agua - Cochabamba, Bolivia (KMLFile 36kB Jul30 24) and distribute a hard copy of the Cochabamba Google Earth activity (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 1.7MB Jul16 24) that corresponds to the kmz file. Each student downloads the Google Earth kmz file for Cochabamba, Bolivia. The file will load in the Temporary Files section of Google Earth. The kmz file consists of geolocated placemarks with photographs, text, and in one case, a short video. Each student should take notes and write down answers to the questions on the corresponding activity sheet. For advanced classes, students can do this for every placemark. An alternative is to assign the first three placemarks to all students and to distribute the last three placemarks among three different groups so each student completes a total of four placemarks. It is important to let students know that these notes and answers are vital for the in-class discussion on this topic.

Note: If students have difficulty accessing any part of the Google Earth assignment, the instructor's file of Text, images, and links for Cochabamba Google Earth activity (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 2.2MB Jul30 24) provides access to the content, videos, and images.

IN CLASS

Exploration Activity (5 min):

To get students thinking about water scarcity and access issues, ask students for a show of hands of how many of them know where their water comes from. Water use statistics for the United States are available from the USGS Water Science School and you may want to have this information written down in preparation for class. Ask students to write answers in Spanish to the following questions:

1. Do you know the source of water for your home community? If so, what is that source? ¿Sabes de dónde viene el agua de tu comunidad? Si lo sabes, ¿cuál es la fuente de esa agua?
2. What proportion of Americans get their drinking water from the subsurface realm (e.g. wells)? From surface water sources (e.g. rivers)? ¿Qué proporción de norteamericanos recibe su agua potable de aguas subterráneas (por ejemplo de acuíferos o pozos)? ¿y qué proporción recibe su agua de aguas superficiales (por ejemplo de ríos o lagos)?
3. How do you know that your water is safe to drink? ¿Cómo sabes que el agua de tu comunidad es segura para beber?
4. Describe a situation in which you did not have access to freshwater. How did the actions of others affect your access? (Write these on the board) Describe una situación en la que no tenías acceso al agua dulce. ¿Cómo la acción de otros afectó tu acceso?

Solicit answers to these questions from students and make notes on the board that track their responses. To end the activity, you can summarize the student responses to the above discussion on how readily they have access to freshwater.

Rain shadows and their connection to the water cycle (10 min):

Ask students to take out their notes from the pre-class activity.

Show the slides Rain shadow in Cochabamba, Bolivia (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 2.4MB May18 16) and ask students to engage in a think-pair-share activity to answer the questions on the slides. The images correspond to information they learned from their homework assignment and offer a way to clarify the material and answer any questions students may have.
At the end, ask students what impact the rain shadow effect might have on the accessibility of water in Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Water distribution — Jigsaw Activity (25 min):

Divide students into three different groups. For larger classes it may be advantageous to have subgroups which discuss the same theme to allow everyone to participate. Assign each group one of the following three alternatives for distributing water in Cochabamba, as presented in the homework assignment:

1. Bechtel (water privatization),
2. SEMAPA (municipal supply), or
3. Asica-Sur (independent local cooperatives).

Each group should first identify and define its water distribution model. Next, using their notes from the homework assignment, students should prepare a list of advantages and disadvantages for this model within the context of Cochabamba's economic and social circumstances. If there are advantages and disadvantages for particular segments of the population, this should be noted as well. Finally, ask students to discuss how their water distribution model might impact the local water cycle, if at all.
Three new groups should then be formed with at least one representative from each water distribution model. Assign roles so that each group represents the interests of one of the following: women, indigenous communities, and farmers. Have students share the advantages and disadvantages for each water supply model and then discuss which option they would choose if they were representing the interests of their assigned roles.
Ask each group to share with the class which option they chose and why.

A key component of this unit is the educational use of Google Earth. Students should have a prior introduction to Google Earth via an in-class demonstration or homework assignment. You can also send them to this walk-though tutorial on how to use Google Earth.

For an excellent continuation of this lesson during subsequent classes, students can watch and then discuss the film También la lluvia (see References and Resources below for a link to pedagogical materials for this film).

Assessment (10 min)

• Distribute a 3 X 5 notecard. On one side ask students to draw from memory a diagram of a rain shadow with a brief explanation in Spanish of how it works. Dibuja un diagrama de una sombra de lluvia y explica cómo funciona.
• On the other side of the notecard, ask students to identify three factors that caused the Cochabamba Water Wars of 2000. Identifica tres factores que causaron las guerras del agua en Cochabamba en el año 2000.
• Assessment rubric for Unit 4 (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 101kB Jul16 24)

Note that the instructor may also collect the pre-class activity and/or evaluate participation in the jigsaw activity to assess other learning goals stated for this unit.

• Udaeta, Maria Esther (date unknown) Bolivia: La visión y participación de las mujeres en la guerra del agua en Cochabamba, Bolivia, from the Gender and Water Alliance
• Cuaderno pedagógico para la película También la lluvia from Cinespagnol-nantes.com
• Centro andino para la gestión y uso del agua from the Andean Centre for Water Management and Use
• Leasing the Rain, a co-production of NOW with Bill Moyers and Frontline World, hosted at PBS
• Proyecto regional -- Sistemas integrados de tratamiento y uso de aguas residuales en América Latina: Realidad y potencial, a 2001 report about Cochabamba