“It’s not enough to just get the money to do these projects. You need to bring the community along with the education.”
Pacoima has long been shaped by water. Its name means “the entrance,” a nod to its place at the base of the mountains and once home to a vibrant, free-flowing river. But decades of disinvestment and infrastructure challenges have jeopardized the water the community needs to thrive. Today, Pacoima Beautiful is working to reverse that.
Since the early planning days of Measure W, the Water Foundation and Pacoima Beautiful have worked together on efforts to ensure water infrastructure planning is community driven. In doing so, Pacoima Beautiful has championed inclusive processes and long-term investments like stormwater capture projects that double as green public spaces, such as Bradley Plaza. Currently, Pacoima Beautiful is a grant recipient of the Safe, Clean Water Program.
Education and community advocacy are crucial to the work Pacoima Beautiful does across its programs. People’s Collaborative Academy and Agua University put both front and center to bridge the gap between community members who want smarter development to address neighborhood needs and the complex planning processes that often leave them out of decision making. People’s Collaborative Academy, a free 10-week program, grew out of a desire to ensure San Fernando Valley residents understood development projects from a fundamental perspective instead of a conceptual one. The program is essentially an entry-level urban planning course intended to target the people who are already curious about what’s being built in their neighborhood, but offers them a closer look at the how and why behind it all.
“Being able to empower people by giving them the right terminology and knowledge to talk to others about what’s happening in our community is how we find solutions,” says Rosa Ruiz, project coordinator. “Even before PCA, Pacoima Beautiful has worked for years to gather community and use that engagement to lead people and create trust with the right partners and municipalities to be a part of these conversations.”
Through People’s Collaborative Academy, residents learn the technical and political realities of infrastructure development, shifting their perspective from skepticism to activism. “It’s not enough to just get the money to do these projects. You need to bring the community along with the education,” says Roxy Rivas, deputy director of capital projects and planning. “With education on these topics, you notice the ‘aha’ moments, like understanding the historic reasons we didn’t get investment — redlining, racism, classism, all the -isms combined — and you see the shift from NIMBY-ism to our community members seeing how these projects and investments can work for them because they were made by them.”
Although “water is always part of the conversation” in Pacoima, given its propensity to be both drought and flood prone given the season, young Pacoima voices are often overlooked, says Michelle Rivas, director of youth programs. Agua University aims to change that. Each year, the four-week session brings together 20 to 30 high school students, tapping into their curiosity to explore Los Angeles’ intricate and fractured water system. The program engages students both in and out of the classroom — from lectures on water science, conservation, and land use to hands-on learning through fieldwork and excursions — to envision a more resilient, equitable water future for Pacoima and beyond.
Eventually, Michelle hopes Agua University will offer college credit, recognizing the deep commitment these students make to their community and the water that makes it home. “Since the pandemic started, roles have shifted in families and many of our students see themselves as contributors to their family budget — their work is a lifeline,” she says. By equipping students with knowledge that can lead to careers in the water field or community advocacy, Agua University is not just educating Pacoima youth, but developing the next generation of water stewards.
Through its partnership, Pacoima Beautiful and the Water Foundation are demonstrating what it looks like when policy is shaped by the people it’s meant to serve. By centering education, youth leadership, and community-driven planning, Pacoima Beautiful honors its past while building a more resilient, equity-centered future. Because in Pacoima, water isn’t just infrastructure: It’s history, it’s health, it’s hope.