In many Indigenous cultures, water is more than a resource. It's a relative. A force. A living presence. In Anishinaabemowin (Canada/USA), nibi means water, but also speaks of kinship and care. In Yorùbá (West Africa), omi is more than just water—it symbolises life, purification, and spiritual power, essential in both daily life and sacred rituals. For the Barkandji people of Australia, the Darling River is Barka—an ancestor flowing through land and time.

These words do more than describe water—they shape how communities protect it, honour it, and fight for it. Western science, speaks of basins, runoff, aquifers—but what if it also spoke of songs, ceremonies, and guardianship? 

In this edition, explore how citizen-led projects around the world protect water through scientific, cultural, and spiritual lenses that complement one another.

And sometimes, these lenses come together in powerful moments of collective victory..

Keep reading to learn more! 

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