Listening To Rivers: Sharing river stories from Aotearoa New Zealand in a European context

This article explores cross-cultural approaches to river stories and riverine well-being, centring Indigenous and transdisciplinary perspectives. Originating in Aotearoa New Zealand, the ‘Let the River Speak’ project interweaves ancestral Māori philosophies, arts, and Earth sciences to engage with rivers as living communities of water, land, plants, animals, and people. The research highlights the Waimatā River in Te Tairāwhiti as a site of cultural and environmental convergence, employing mātauranga Māori (ancestral knowledge), ecological insights, and creative practices to transcend nature/culture and theory/practice divides. Presented in Udine, Italy, the project reflected on global connections between waterways and their communities, including the Tagliamento River and Venice’s lagoon. Drawing on art, storytelling, and science, the article emphasises the necessity of collective, more-than-human approaches to river stewardship amidst escalating environmental challenges. It argues for the inclusion of diverse knowledge systems to foster adaptive, sustainable relationships with waterways and their ecosystems.