This daily and seasonal passage of solar radiance, water s flow, and the earth s metabolic breaths is as unique in each watershed, as in each human, on the planet. From forested headwaters through agricultural midstream valleys to the commercial and industrial centers at the river s mouth, good and bad news travels by water. The watershed journey is right out your window among the hills and valleys that surround you. It is the first excursion of thought into the place you live. It is not inner geography the continuing attempt to feel better by mapping the mysterious meanderings of our hearts and mind nor is it whole-Earth geography, the struggle to gain perspective of our place in planetary history.
Watershed consciousness is a form of home awareness, respect, maintenance and repair.
The Watershed Way is a middle way, singing a local song, somewhere close by, between Mind and Planet. Watershed Economy Watersheds provide free or relatively cheap community services that are often undervalued or not valued in river basin protection. No one has a good method for pricing sublime beauty or the value of dawn song in spring. Watershed plants, microbes and soils act as chemical renovators, biocyclers, and filters of water quality. Clay soils are still the best free filters known.