Juan Murillo is one of the newest members of the WRI team. He is the resident archivist at the WRI Palm Desert campus and has been with us since 2014.
Juan grew up in the Coachella Valley; he attended Coachella Valley High School and then while attending California State University he was offered an internship at the Water Resources Institute. This internship opened the door for Juan and after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Public & Oral History he became the new archivist for the Salton Sea Repository at CSUSB, Palm Desert.
Juan is thoroughly enjoying his responsibilities at the repository, where, as he says, he “collects, processes, preserves and makes available for use to the public, historic Salton Sea related materials such as maps, books, and newspaper articles.The collection includes Salton Sea Authority Policy and Public Relations documents, administrative records and reports, and science and research studies and projects like environmental, air and water quality, agricultural, public heath, and restoration studies and reports. The Salton Sea Repository also includes materials of interest to the history and development of the region.”
One of the many benefits to being “locally grown” is that Juan Murillo is altogether familiar with the challenges facing the Coachella Valley and surrounding regions. He understands the delicate and complex environmental and public health issues that must be worked through by the community and its leaders and his new role as archivist at the repository is as a result a personal and meaningful one. Juan’s enthusiasm for the region and its communities is as apparent as his dedication to his new responsibilities. Welcome aboard, Juan!
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