We Are Rivers

Through displacement, genocide and enslavement, the Waccamaw Indian People sustain their river heritage. Join us today to learn more about the Waccamaw Indian People and their history with the Waccamaw River in coastal South Carolina. For the Waccamaw Indian People, layers of oppression eroded the relationship between people and the river they relied on and that coursed through their history, culture, and being. But the impacts of that displacement don’t just live in the past, and it is essential that the connection the Waccamaw Indian People have with the river is strengthened and reestablished for the future of their communities, and for the future of the Waccamaw River.

Photo Credit: Cheryl Sievers-Cail and Chief Hatcher of the Waccamaw Indian People, Courtesy of Cheryl Sievers-Cail

Across the country, cities and towns are rallying around forgotten areas of their communities - including rivers, creeks, open spaces and community parks. These areas are being rehabilitated and restored so locals and tourists alike can enjoy the many benefits they provide. In Austin, Texas, community members in East Austin came together to restore a forgotten creekside park - what has become Little Walnut Creek Greenbelt. Join us today to learn about the community driven process to undertake a master plan effort and create a new vision for The Little Walnut Creek Greenbelt.

Photo Credit: Little Walnut Creek Greenbelt, Gibran Lule-Hurtado

In the second of this two-part podcast, we are joined by our partners at the Hispanic Access Foundation for a conversation about the importance of water - including rivers, lakes and oceans – to the Latino community. We dive deeper into stories and personal connections to water from members of the Ocean’s Advisory Committee. While unique, these stories weave through similar themes, and encourage us to further examine the way water links us to place, to home, and to family. Most of all, these inspiring stories remind us how those critical connections to water compel us to fight for its protection.

Photo Credit: Hispanic Access Foundation

Join us for a miniseries of We Are Rivers: Conversations about the Rivers that Connect Us. In this two-part conversation we are joined by our partners at the Hispanic Access Foundation for a conversation about the importance of water - including rivers, lakes and oceans – to the Latinx community. The first episode dives into the Hispanic Access Foundations’ work to engage Latino communities in river and ocean conservation, and the role personal connections to water play in inspiring the work of the Foundation. We hear about Latino Conservation Week and the ocean conservation work the Hispanic Access Foundation is spearheading, as well as some great personal stories from members of the Hispanic Access Foundation's Oceans Advisory Council. Tune in today!

Photo Credit: Vamos A Pescar event in Richmond, Virginia, photo taken by Jessica Godinez, Hispanic Access Foundation

Join us for a two-part miniseries of We Are Rivers. We’ll learn more about Colorado's Stream Management Plans, an innovative planning tool prioritized in Colorado’s Water Plan, from people working with stakeholder groups and communities across Colorado to put them in place.

If you were inspired by the first Episode, make sure to tune in today. In the second episode, we hear from some of the same voices and from new ones from the Rio Grande Basin – including Heather Dutton with the San Luis Valley Water Conservancy District and Emma Reesor with Rio Grande Headwaters Restoration Project – about the groundbreaking and inspiring ways communities are working together to plan for the future of the rivers and streams that bind them, and all of us, together.

Listen in and join us today!

Photo Credit: Daniel Boyes, Rio Grande Headwaters Restoration Project

Join us for a two-part miniseries of We Are Rivers. We’ll learn more about Colorado's Stream Management Plans, an innovative planning tool prioritized in Colorado’s Water Plan, from people working with stakeholder groups and communities across Colorado to put them in place.

In the first episode of this miniseries, we hear from Nicole Seltzer, Science and Policy Manager of River Network, who talks us through the fundamentals of the stream management planning process. Holly Loff, Executive Director of Eagle River Watershed Council, shares on-the-ground experiences of a community planning effort along the Eagle River, and Chelsea Congdon-Brundige, a watershed consultant in the Roaring Fork Valley, shares her highlights from a similar but unique effort for the Crystal River.

Listen in and join us today!

Photo Credit: Eagle River Watershed Council

In Episode 26 of We Are Rivers, we take a deeper look at the National Wildlife Refuge System and why it is so important to health of America’s natural resources. We explore the many benefits that the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge provide for human and natural communities in coastal South Carolina and why the minor boundary modification of Refuge was critical in ensuring that these benefits are preserved for future generations. Tune in today!

Photo Credit: Waccamaw River, Mac Stone

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2020 spotlights why our communities need clean water and healthy rivers now, more than ever. This year’s list highlights how climate change is threatening communities with increasingly severe flooding. Across the country communities are experiencing unprecedented challenges related to too much water at the wrong time. In the Midwest, we have a recipe for disaster, where poor river management is colliding with the reality of climate change.

Right now, communities are stretched dangerously thin by the covid-19 pandemic, and the virus is exposing the vulnerabilities and dangers that come with relying on outdated flood control approaches. It’s time for our leaders to embrace proven solutions that protect river health, improve public safety and strengthen communities.

Join us today on We Are Rivers to learn about America’s #1 Most Endangered River for 2020 and the solutions that can help move our rivers and our nation forward. Visit at www.AmericanRivers.org/EndangeredRivers

Photo Credit: Mississippi River through St. Louis, Bryan Werner

Join us for Episode 24 where we dive into Colorado's Instream Flow Program, a critical tool to protect and enhance river flows across the state of Colorado. In this episode we break down the complexities of the program, discuss the different tools that make up the Instream Flow Program, explore the program's benefits and understand the collaborative nature of the program.

Photo Credit: Yampa River through the City of Steamboat Springs, City of Steamboat

In 1979, Mark Dubois chained himself to a boulder to protest filling of the reservoir behind the New Melones Dam that would drown California’s Stanislaus River. In episode 23 of the We Are Rivers podcast, listen to Mark share his story and lessons on saving beloved places. We also hear from Craig Tucker on the Klamath River, which promises to be one of the most significant dam removal and river restoration projects the world has seen.

Photo Credit: Klamath River, Josh Miller