A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Denver, Colorado (U.S.A.) and San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora (Mexico) this past March 23rd to establish the “Sister Cities of the River” Council. This letter of intent recognizes the importance of protecting and restoring the Colorado River for economic development, quality of life, and culture of the cities established in its basin.

This initiative was created with to strengthen and formalize the bilateral relationship, and create a leadership exchange, good will, and binational projects (culture, art, and environment). It will also promote the connection of users of the resource on both sides of the border.

The signature took place under the 3rd World Water Day Forum, organized by the City Council and the Municipal Water Operator of San Luis Rio Colorado (OOMAPAS), in which civil society organizations, governmental agencies, sanluisine community, and experts in water management and restoration met to discuss sustainability, climate change, infrastructure, and binational cooperation between Mexico and the United States in the Colorado River basin.

“We are all connected to the basin, from its birth in the mountains to its mouth in the sea. The Colorado River delta is one of the most important sites on the continent for migratory water birds; each winter more than 200,000 birds that nest in the United States and Canada arrive in this area,” said Dr. Osvel Hinojosa Huerta, Water and Wetland Program Director for Pronatura Noroeste during the forum.

The City of Denver and San Luis Rio Colorado participated in the signature, together with the Cocopah ethnic group, OOMAPAS, the Autonomous University of Baja California, the Denver Botanical Garden, the University of Colorado – Boulder, artists Rick Sargent and Manuel Cuen, urban planners Nancy Saldaña and Paul Hellmund, Americans for Conservation + the Arts, and Pronatura Noroeste A.C.