Co-Sponsored by: Brookline-Quezalguaque Sister City Project & Brookline Dept. of Public Health, Brookline Adult & Community Education, Brookline Rotary Club, Climate Action Brookline, Friends of Brookline Public Health Keynote Speaker: Betsy Reilley, Ph.D. Director, Environmental Quality, Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) The Brookline and Quezalguaque communities could not be more different, yet safe drinking water is a concern in both communities. Residents of Quezalguaque in Nicaragua struggle with basic access to a reliable and safe water supply. They fear that their water supply is contaminated and may be contributing to an epidemic of chronic kidney disease. In contrast, Brookline’s residents have access to one of the safest drinking water systems in the U.S. by most measures. Still, residents install filters and buy bottled water to avoid drinking tap water. Join us to hear and learn about risks from one of Massachusetts’ leading experts on water quality with in-depth knowledge of both water systems. Betsy Reilley is director of Environmental Quality for the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) and is responsible for sampling, reporting, and compliance programs to assure optimal water quality for 2.5 million residents of eastern Massachusetts. Dr. Reilley has a Ph.D. in microbiology from Clark University, and is the former U.S. Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya and worked on community water projects in her time there. The Brookline-Quezalguaque Sister City Project invested more than $80,000 and facilitated the investment of another $45,000 with support from the Brookline Rotary and Rotary International to assure safe drinking water in the Quezalguaque community. Dr. Reilley has served as a volunteer consultant to the Sister City Project clean water initiative and has made three trips at her own expense to Quezalguaque to provide on-site expert consultation and assistance.