By: Sean Donnelly

Oaxaca is a southern Mexican state known for its rich Indigenous heritage, cultural diversity, and mountainous geography. It is home to 16 officially recognized Indigenous groups, including the Zapotec, Mixtec, and Mazatec peoples, many of whom maintain distinct languages, traditions, and governance systems. Approximately 48 percent of the population in Oaxaca has indigenous lineage, second most among Mexican states to Yucatán. Despite its cultural wealth, Oaxaca is one of Mexico’s most economically marginalized states, with limited access to infrastructure in many rural areas. The region’s rugged terrain and historical neglect have contributed to challenges in education, healthcare, and especially water access for Indigenous communities.

Rural Indigenous communities in Mexico face some of the most acute water access challenges in the country. Many indigenous settlements are located in remote or mountainous regions where public water infrastructure is limited or nonexistent. This lack of infrastructure, compounded by deep-rooted poverty and social marginalization, severely impacts the health, education, and economic future of these indigenous communities. As a result, families often rely on unsafe or distant water sources, with women and children bearing the brunt of water collection. These conditions contribute to health risks, lost educational opportunities, and broader social inequities. Structural neglect, geographic isolation, and climate variability further deepen the crisis, making community-led solutions, like rainwater harvesting, essential for achieving water security and preserving Indigenous autonomy.

Water supply has been an issue for the Mazatec people in the Oaxacan region for many years, resulting in lost opportunities and hindered academic development for school-aged children. According to Maribel Gallardo Escobedo, climate change has already started to impact her community in San José Tenango, Oaxaca, further complicating the water issue.

Those who can afford it (and live in accessible areas) may opt to purchase water from delivery trucks. It would take many members of the Mazatec community several days to earn the money required for one delivery truck, though, and storage is limited, meaning those who do rely on delivery trucks are required to pay for multiple deliveries throughout the year. These fees add up and represent an additional stressor for families who are already economically vulnerable.

“This has greatly affected our communities to the degree that it has been necessary to buy the (water) more in remote communities or where the roads arrive. They have also bought the (water) from a 1000 or 1100 liter tank, which has cost 1000 pesos or 800 in communities where the roads reach, and in communities where the roads do not reach, they have to search for the (water). This sometimes involves a day of travel, during which the family member, usually the father who is the breadwinner, has lost a workday. Here, the payment is between 50 to 200 pesos for land clearing or firewood cutting.”

To confront these pressing issues, Isla Urbana, in conjunction with the Mazatec, launched the Nandá Jtsí in 2019, a transformative program focused on the installation of sustainable rainwater harvesting systems on the rooftops of the homes and schools of the Mazatec. The program has offered a lifeline to the region during a time of increasing uncertainty. Its name, which means “rainwater” in Mazatec, reflects the core mission of the program – bringing sustainable water access to communities where an astonishing 89.6% of households lack access to clean water. Isla Urbana also offers comprehensive training in the installation, maintenance, and repair of rainwater systems to community members, empowering them to take ownership of their water supply.  This initiative provides immediate access to water and invests in the long-term capacity of the community to manage and sustain their systems. Isla Urbana works with the local cooperative, Naxo Tojndi, to foster technical expertise and community autonomy. Through collaboration among certified technicians, cooperative members, residents, and Isla Urbana’s regional team, the program ensures that solutions to water scarcity are both sustainable and locally led. Its impact extends well beyond infrastructure, advancing a broader vision of resilience, dignity, and self-sufficiency for the Mazatec communities it serves.

Though the Nandá Jtsí program began in 2019, the relationship between Isla Urbana and the Mazatec began in 2014. “We found Isla Urbana when the communities were looking for allies. To achieve the vision that the community had of having water and making that water available at home, and having a good way to store it.” The partnership is already having a transformational impact on members of the Mazatec community.

In just about six years, the Nandá Jtsí program has made a great deal of progress in changing the outlook on water for the Mazatec. According to Gallardo Escobedo, the program has installed 108 rainwater harvesting systems on private homes and 12 systems on public schools since being launched. “The plans to continue are to keep following up on these installations and systems, as well as to cover more communities that need one or two pilots in each community, according to the organizational structure of each community.”

When asked about the impact the Nandá Jtsí program has had on the Mazatec community in San José Tenango, Gallardo Escobedo reflected on the program thoughtfully. “The impact has been very great. Both economically, for our families, since when there is no water during periods of drought, it is not just about losing one day or two days of it, but we lose months dedicated to searching for water, and that is a significant impact for our families. We can have water available at home with certainty, allowing us to engage in other activities to generate income in the context of the cooperative.”