All groundbreaking projects begin as simple ideas – Water Woman is no exception. What began as an art project for an undergraduate student progressed over time into an educational program that can now be found in elementary school curriculums across the United States. As the Executive Director of Water Woman, Dr. Krajewski turned her undergraduate idea into a reality.
The combination of Dr. Krajewski’s passion for women’s issues and her outrage of the disproportionate effects of the global water crisis on women and children produced what came to be the character embodiment of her academic and professional careers – Water Woman.
In an undergraduate intermedia class for her art minor, Dr. Krajewski challenged herself, but little did she know at the time that her challenge would be the catalyst to her revolutionary program. She was required to choose the medium she was least comfortable with for her final project, performance media, and that is where Water Woman began.
Dr. Krajewski has always had a love and a special connection to water. She attributes her draw to water from her grandfather and dad both being hydrologists, and her career as a swimmer in high school. With her pull to water and her drive to work in a capacity that helps the environment, the character that she had to perform came all at once.
An environmental superhero, Water Woman, rolled off the tongue perfectly. Her passion project became easy to conceptualize and consisted of dying a wig, modifying clothing, and designing takeaways for the exhibition. Everything came together when she was “performing” as Water Woman at the open house event.
“I knew I was not going to be done with Water Woman after that class – I loved the character, and believed she was something that I needed to do with my life,” explained Dr. Krajewski.
Water Woman was not always at the forefront though, as Dr. Krajewski pursued her Master’s Degree in Public Health and her PhD in Mass Communication, she did not have time to expound on the details of the creation of Water Woman. In fact, this project has been in the works since 2005.
Sitting in a classroom in India on a sustainability research study abroad program, Dr. Krajewski learned about the statistics surrounding the effects of world water poverty on women and children specifically. After 7-8 years, Water Woman came back to Dr.Krajewski.
Fourteen years later, Water Woman now met a timing that aligned with Dr. Krajewski’s life. After a presentation during Flagler College’s annual Communication Week, Dr. Krajewski was meet with enthusiasm from students and the opportunity to implement Water Woman into an educational organization on campus, Dow Advantage.
Dow Advantage is a student run public relations group that is dedicated to the promotion of nonprofit organizations and clients. Water Woman, designed to be a nonprofit, made a splash into this organization and the students, with the advising of Dr. Krajewski, made waves with the environmental superhero.
“Water Woman is intended to not be for profit, but to be a self-sustaining program, so that we can provide services to women and girls around the world free of charge,” stated Dr. Krajewski.
The goal is all about improving the outcome in the world for women and children who were dealt who were dealt a more difficult hand in the lottery of life. These are the people who are most affected by the water crisis.
Water Woman began as an idea brought on by a project for class. We hope that Water Woman and her adventures inspire and empower young girls to pursue careers in the water sector. Together, Water Woman and children across the nation can beat the global water crisis – one water footprint at a time.
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