Sagrado Student Inaugurates “Aguascidia”, a Water Collection Project in Barrio Obrero

The community-impact project was developed after receiving a grant from the Projects for Peace program.

Marcela Jiménez Ruiz
Journalism Student

Sagrado student Indirâ Accipe recently inaugurated Aguascidia, a rainwater collection, storage, and reuse project installed at San Pablo Methodist Church in Barrio Obrero, Santurce.

Accipe, a Strategic Communication student at the Ferré Rangel School of Communication and a native of Guadalupe, developed the project with the goal of making use of rainwater, helping mitigate the effects of flooding, and facilitating access to water for the community during emergencies.

The idea for Aguascidia emerged during an entrepreneurship course at Sagrado, after Accipe recognized the needs and challenges faced by Caribbean populations regarding access to drinking water. Later, Lorena Franco, director of the Center for Professional and International Experiences (CEPI, per its Spanish acronym), suggested that she submit the project to Projects for Peace, an international program that supports students in implementing projects in communities.

Accipe received a $10,000 grant from Projects for Peace to develop Aguascidia. With the support of Awilda Camacho, president of the Group of Eight communities surrounding the Martín Peña Channel (G-8), she was able to identify a community in need.

“Thanks to the G-8, we were able to find the community that needed this assistance. For me, it was exceptional to see that this community was also looking for resources and ways to implement a system like this,” Accipe said.

The system installed at San Pablo Methodist Church collects rainwater, filters it, and stores it for later use in the kitchen of the community’s soup kitchen. In keeping with the system’s purpose, the facilities also feature a rooftop garden that helps absorb more water and direct it into the filtration and storage process.

“For me, it was important that the system could be implemented to create a virtuous cycle for the community,” Accipe said. Aguascidia also has the potential to be replicated in other communities facing challenges related to water access and management.

The project’s name comes from the combination of the words “agua” (water) and “ascidia” (sea squirt). As Accipe explained during the event, an ascidian is a marine animal that obtains food and oxygen by filtering water and then redistributes it into the sea. The student drew inspiration from this concept to develop an initiative that would do “something similar on land for people.”

During the inauguration, Pastor Nilka Marrero highlighted Accipe’s efforts and the project’s contribution to the community.

“Indira, you bring your learning and talent. The boundaries that divide us disappear with this achievement,” the pastor said during the inauguration ceremony. She also noted that the community received not only the project, but “a story of talent and the university’s willingness to contribute to communities,” emphasizing that initiatives such as Aguascidia help build and preserve the history of their communities.

Accipe expressed her gratitude to Projects for Peace for the opportunity; to Dr. Nadesha K. González Nieves, associate vice president of Curriculum Development at Sagrado; and to Dr. Carlos Muñiz Osorio, professor at the School of General Education, for their support from the academic community. She also thanked the community of San Pablo Methodist Church for opening its doors and placing its trust in the project.

The inauguration concluded with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the project, followed by a song of gratitude performed by community members.

Aguascidia represents the culmination of an idea that began three years ago in an entrepreneurship course at Sagrado and that, through collaboration with the Barrio Obrero community, became a project aimed at addressing needs related to water access and management in the community.

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