Upstream, Downstream: Exploring Watershed Connections

It is unlikely that you have a book in your collection dedicated to exploring watershed connections. Given the importance of the topic to every living being, Upstream, Downstream: Exploring Watershed Connections will be an excellent addition to your library.

Written in a conversational style, Upstream, Downstream tells the story of our connections to watersheds and the environment. Using examples from Canada and around the world, author Rowena Rae breaks down complex concepts of hydrology, the branch of science concerned with the properties of earth’s water, and especially its movement in relation to land (definition from Oxford Languages).

My favourite part of the book is “Watershed Warriors!” This section includes stories and pictures of people of all ages taking action to protect our watersheds and the environment for current and future residents of the planet.

One example is the story of teenage chef Louise Mabulo. When Typhoon Nock-Ten hit the Philippines on Christmas Day, 2016,

Louise noticed that cacao trees – which give us chocolate – had stayed standing through and after the typhoon. As a chef, she knew cacao is a valuable product that can bring farmers a good income. So she started the Cacao Project to provide seedlings to farmers …

What does this project have to do with watershed connections? The 70,000 cacao trees planted over 173 acres (70 hectares) of land are preventing deforestation – farmers with no crops to sell often cut down and sell trees instead. And thanks to the roots of the cacao trees anchoring the soil and holding on to water in the soil, two of the community’s streams now have good flow and don’t dry up. (pp. 40-41)

Pictures and images used to support the text are each credited to a specific source. This detail provides wonderful examples to young readers of how to properly acknowledge intellectual property. Bravo to the editors/creators.

Additional information is highlighted in “Ripples”, text boxes that extend the content. Sidebars also add pictures and text to explore a topic in more depth.

The theme of Upstream, Downstream: Exploring Watershed Connections is the interconnectedness of our daily actions with watersheds and the environment. “Connections That Count” summarizes nine ways that readers can use small actions to make a big difference.

This review is based on an advance reading copy so the text and page numbers quoted may be changed in the final copy. The advance copy includes a table of contents, with chapters on “A Watery World”, “The Nuts and Bolts of Watersheds”, “Watersheds in Trouble”, and “Watershed Warriors!” The book also has a two-page glossary, and a “Resources” list that includes Print, Online, and Apps. Pages for an index are empty but indicate that they will be included in the final printing.

The combination of Rae’s interests and expertise has produced a book that will inform and engage young readers and encourage them to make a difference by getting involved.