View 2021 Symposium sessions
The 2021 Symposium was hosted virtually on Nov. 3 and focused on solutions at various scales; panels and keynotes featured speakers from the local to regional level, with a focus on how solutions to water challenges can be scaled up or down to make impact. Click the hyperlinks below to view video of the sessions.
The Water in the West Symposium mirrors programing and conversations that will be ongoing at CSU Spur and its Hydro building, focused on water; Spur is now open, and Hydro opens in November 2022!
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 3, 2021
9:30-11 a.m.
Optional tours
- CSU Spur construction site
- Metro Water Recovery
1-1:15 p.m.
Welcome, land acknowledgement, and opening remarks [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Jocelyn Hittle — Colorado State University System
Ty Smith — Colorado State University
Tony Frank — Colorado State University System
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock
1:15-1:45 p.m.
Keynote address [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Tanya Trujillo — U.S. Department of the Interior
1:45-2:45 p.m.
City Solutions Panel [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Moderator: Jim Lochhead — Denver Water
John Entsminger — Southern Nevada Water Authority
Adel Hagekhalil — Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Andrew Lee — Seattle Public Utilities
2:45-3 p.m.
Break [WATCH THIS SESSION]
3-4 p.m.
Colorado Solutions Panel [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Moderator: Jennifer Gimbel — Colorado Water Center
Becky Mitchell — Colorado Water Conservation Board
Phil Weiser — Colorado Attorney General
Perry Cabot — Colorado State University
4-4:10 p.m.
Remarks
Colorado Governor Jared Polis [WATCH THIS SESSION]
U.S. Senator Michael Bennet [WATCH THIS SESSION]
4:10-5:10 p.m.
Solutions in the American West Panel [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Moderator: Brad Udall — Colorado Water Center
Bidtah Becker — Navajo Tribal Utility Authority
Jennifer Pitt — National Audubon Society
Pat O’Toole — Family Farm Alliance
5:10-5:15 p.m.
Closing remarks [WATCH THIS SESSION]
Thank you to our 2021 sponsors
Content sponsors
Regional reach sponsors
Connectivity sponsors
Nonprofit virtual sponsor
© 2022 Colorado State University System.
All Rights Reserved.
BIDTAH BECKER
Associate Attorney, Navajo Tribal Utility Authority
Ms. Becker has dedicated her career to the Navajo Nation and its natural resources. She is currently serving as an Associate Attorney for the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority. Prior to this position, she had the honor of serving as the Director of the Navajo Nation Division of Natural Resources from May 2013 to January 2019, as an appointee of President Begaye and Vice-President Nez, after serving eleven (11) years as an attorney for the Navajo Nation focusing on water rights and natural resources issues. Continuing her deep interest and passion for water, she serves on the Leadership Team for the Water and Tribes Initiative in the Colorado River Basin, as a Commissioner on the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, as an appointee of Governor Lujan Grisham, and on the Navajo Nation Water Rights Commission, as an appointee of Speaker Damon. Ms. Becker is equally passionate about supporting artists and serves as a Trustee for the Institute of American Indian Arts and Culture (IAIA), as an appointee of President Obama. Ms. Becker is a member of the Nation and lives on the Navajo Nation in Fort Defiance with her husband and two school age children.
