In the global fight against the corporate takeover of water, a powerful movement of women leaders has emerged to defend the world’s most vital resource as both a human right and a sacred common good. This article highlights the work of six pivotal ecofeminist activists, including Vandana Shiva, who challenges the privatization of water by institutions such as the World Bank, and Medha Patkar, whose resistance forced the Bank’s withdrawal from the massive Narmada Valley dam project in India. It also shares the stories of Maude Barlow, whose advocacy was crucial in the UN’s recognition of water as a human right; Hubbie Hussein Al-Haji, executive director of WomenKind Kenya, who inspires and supports Kenyan women to join water management committees; and Asaha Elizabeth Ufei from Cameroon, who brought the reality of water scarcity for African women to the global stage during the International Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. The summary also honors the legacy of Berta Cáceres, the Indigenous Lenca leader murdered in Honduras for her successful resistance to the Agua Zarca hydroelectric project. Their collective legacy offers a powerful testament to community-led resistance against the privatization of nature itself.
