'A River of Blood': How Colombian Communities Are Fighting to Save the Rio Atrato

September 12, 2018

The Berkley Center has partnered with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting to offer a student fellowship and other initiatives that support journalism that investigates or illuminates the religious dimension of an international issue, bringing to light what is often overlooked, untold, or misunderstood. As part of her work researching the role of the Catholic Church in the Colombia Peace Accords, in this video 2018 Berkley Center-Pulitzer Center international reporting fellow Julia Friedmann examines how communities in Colombia's Pacific coast are fighting to save the Rio Atrato after industrial mines polluted the water and armed groups competed for territory.

Editor's Note: This video was produced as part of the Pulitzer Center International Reporting Fellowship, a partnership between Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. It was originally published on the Pulitzer Center's website.

About the Author

Julia Friedmann

Julia Friedmann (SFS'19) graduated from the Walsh School of Foreign Service in 2019, having majored in regional and comparative studies with a focus on Latin America and the Middle East. She also minored in Spanish and studied for a certificate in Jewish civilization. Julia was the 2018 Berkley Center-Pulitzer Center international reporting fellow and spent summer 2018 researching the role of the Catholic Church in the Colombia Peace Accords. Julia also worked at the center as a student research assistant for Dr. Shaun Casey, conducting research about the role of religion in international politics.