Asia’s rich tapestry of cultures and unparalleled ethnic diversity are connected by important transboundary river basins, including the Mekong, Salween, Indus, and Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna. These rivers originate in the Himalayas and the Tibetan plateau, connecting ecosystems fed by glaciers and snowmelt to floodplains and major river deltas downstream.
They support rich biodiversity, and the food, livelihoods and cultural systems of the region’s people are intimately connected with their flows. Large dams, ill-conceived infrastructure projects and climate change threaten to wreak havoc on these systems.
Our Work
We work closely with local communities to protect these sacred, productive and biodiverse rivers. We seek to ensure that women, indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities have their voices heard and rights respected in the decisions that affect their lives, and we build movements to stop destructive projects and promote a just energy transition.
A woman pans for gold along the Upper Salween River| Photo by Pai Deetes, International Rivers 
International Rivers’ Pai Deetes and partners at the Salween River, Day of Action 2018 |Photos by International Rivers
River Basins
Related Resources
Latest Updates
- Three Years Later the Lao Dam Disaster is still a warning on How Unsustainable and Unjust Dams Are
By: Phairin Sohsai, Thai-Mekong Campaign Coordinator for International Rivers This article was originally featured in Bangkok Tribune. Countless examples of dam disasters, the Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy hydropower project in Southern Laos included,… - Our World Heritage is deeply tied to rivers and they need protection from dams
by Gary Lee, Southeast Asia Program Director for International Rivers, Sarinee Achavanuntakul, Head of Research for Fair Finance Thailand, and Eugene Simonov, Co-founder, Coordinator and Conservation Science Expert for Rivers without… - Asian Development Bank: It’s Time to Stop Financing Large-scale Hydropower and other False Climate Solutions
Yesterday, International Rivers’ Southeast Asia Program Director Gary Lee joined partners at the NGO Forum on ADB press conference. The science and historical evidence is clear–if we want to tackle… - Op-Ed | Women Bear the Highest Cost of Injustice
By: Pai Deetes, Regional Campaigns and Communications Director, Southeast Asia ProgramInternational Rivers Op-ed originally published on Bangkok Post Soithip, an ethnic Karen-Thai woman from Bang Kloi in the Kaeng Krachan…