In 1985, a dedicated group of volunteers united around a shared vision to develop a worldwide network to protect rivers and promote just and sustainable energy options. Today, that movement is still going strong. Join us in celebrating the communities and partners who oppose destructive hydropower, protect rivers, and advocate for the rights of rivers and riverine communities.
Since 1985, International Rivers has been at the heart of the global movement to ensure river-dependent communities’ voices are heard and their rights are respected.
Rivers are the arteries of the earth, supporting the highest rate of biodiversity compared to any other ecosystem and providing for the livelihoods of millions of local, indigenous and traditional peoples. Rivers are also under extreme threat, with less than 10% of the world’s river basins protected.
International Rivers strengthens movements of communities and civil society at the forefront of defending rivers by:
• Undertaking investigative research to generate robust data and evidence to inform policies and campaigns.
• Remaining independent and fearless in campaigning to expose and resist destructive projects.
• Developing a vision that protects rivers and the communities that depend upon them.
On the global front lines of climate justice, few stories resonate as powerfully as that of Mariluz Canaquiri Murayari. This year, the Peruvian Indigenous leader was awarded the prestigious 2025 Goldman Environmental Prize for her tireless work defending the Marañón River. A grandmother and leader of the Kukama people, Mariluz organized local women to launch…
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by Monti Aguirre, Latin America Director of International Rivers In a world reeling from crisis—climate upheaval, collapsing ecosystems, poisoned waters — there are still places and people who remind us what it means to belong to nature. Not conquer it, not dominate it, but live with it. The Marañón River, one of the great arteries…
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