Water Justice and Media Lab End of Season Celebration

The end-of-season Water Justice Lab celebration will feature films on local ecology and environmental issues, including the premiere of a short video created by Media Lab fellows. The Water Justice Lab (WJL) is a collaborative program between Riverkeeper and NATURE Lab. This year, youth fellows were joined by a youth media team, made possible by a successful spring ’26 fundraiser.

Alongside the youth-produced film, we’ll share two other short films connected to local ecology: The Nature of Nature: Biodiversity in the Hudson Valley, a 2025 film featuring local organizations such as Hudson Taconic Land Trust and Outdoor Promise; and We Are Water, a film by Talking Rivers, an organization that helps humans listen to the voice of rivers and honor the Rights of Nature. The films will be followed by a panel discussion with local environmental advocates and researchers. An open house at NATURE Lab will take place before the event.

This annual celebration marks another season of water testing and education around environmental justice. Media Lab (ML) fellows documented the six-week summer Source to Estuary program, producing a film that will be presented at the celebration. Through water quality monitoring and related programming, WJL educates communities about water justice, helps develop the advocacy capacity of North-Central Troy, and strengthens a network of environmental justice advocates focused on water issues in the Hudson River (Mahicannituck) Watershed.

Panelists

Jim Bonesteel is the Executive Director of Hudson Taconic Lands, which focuses on conservation through community in Rensselaer County. He started as a volunteer and now leads a growing team of 11, working to bring the organization’s mission to life. Jim lives with his wife, Jill, in Stephentown. His three grown children grew up playing in the woods of the Rensselaer Plateau. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, and canoeing with his family.

Maria Florencia Pérez is New York Program Lead and Education Coordinator at the Environmental Law Center. She is a lawyer focused on sustainability and environmental policies and has collaborated with government agencies, international organizations, and private entities on initiatives involving public procurement, sustainable supply chains, and biodiversity conservation in Latin America. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University, a Master’s in Environmental Policy, Law, and Management from Universidad Austral, and a law degree from the University of Buenos Aires.

Tamara Jolly is the Community Initiatives Manager for the Adirondack Diversity Initiative, where she draws on her expertise in biology, ecology, teaching, and DEI to foster inclusive and resilient communities across the Adirondacks. She advocates for making nature accessible and inclusive and fostering a sense of belonging for marginalized communities. While on sabbatical from teaching high school science in Baltimore City, Maryland, she attended SUNY Environmental Science & Forestry’s Ranger School and graduated as valedictorian. In her free time, she enjoys birding, the arts, and outdoor adventures with her husband and daughter.

Lee Willbanks is a co-founder and board president of Talking Rivers, a not-for-profit advocating for the rights of the St. Lawrence River / Kaniatarowanénhne, its tributaries, their watersheds, and the human and other-than-human beings who inhabit them. An environmental lawyer with a Master’s in Public Administration, Lee served as counsel and chief of staff to a New York State Senator whose district included the eastern shore of Lake Ontario and most of the Upper St. Lawrence River. Later, as Upper St. Lawrence Riverkeeper, he and others advocated for a more environmentally appropriate flow regime for Lake Ontario and the River. Lee also co-chairs the Steering Committee for the St. Lawrence River Institute’s River Strategy and serves on the Institute’s Great River Rapport external advisory committee.

Cling Malaco (moderator) is Water Justice Lab’s 2026 Youth Mentor and a Ph.D. student in Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Cling specializes in global health policy, governance, and sociogerontechnology. As a Fulbright scholar, she studied communications and public health at the State University of New York at Albany and has worked with national and international development organizations. Growing up in the Philippines surrounded by nature, she developed an interest in how humans, technologies, environments, and nonliving organisms are interconnected in shaping health and well-being. She brings this interdisciplinary perspective to WJL, working with young people and the community to envision healthier and more equitable futures.

This event is co-sponsored by iEar Presents!