Reviving Paradise in the Mediterranean - aiding nature's resurgence with Water Cycle Restoration

Want to learn the skills to heal landscapes with your own two hands?
https://www.waterstories.com/core-course

Learn how an ancient, degraded Mediterranean landscape can be regenerated with water retention earthworks. We were asked to bring back water to a dry, degraded patch of land in Greece, so we set to the challenge of building structures that would help capture every drop of rainfall, so we could start rehydrating this ancient landscape.

We spent a month on a Greek island reshaping the land to positively influence water flow and function in a Mediterranean landscape. Greece, like many other Mediterranean countries, is experiencing rapid desertification. Fire, flood, and drought are becoming commonplace. Elder locals recall summer rains from their childhood that would cool their crop fields; but these rains stopped 40 years ago and now the rivers and land are suffering.

The Island has been experiencing unusual climate extremes, much longer periods of drought with shorter more intense rains when they do arrive. This work helps to balance out those seasonal extremes, providing water to the landscape throughout the year. As a result there is additional growth, and cooling, making a more balanced and productive microclimate.

In this video, we walk you through our solution- rehydrating the landscape with earthworks. From the construction of hundreds of meters of terraces and a small earthen-dam pond, to discussing the history of this particular landscape, we show you a path towards recreating a resilient and abundant environment. Through hard work and modern machinery, we show you how to create an incredibly positive impact on our water, land, and lives.

When humans work with water and nature we are capable of some truly incredible feats; rejuvenating landscapes, reviving springs, rivers, and even whole regions, turning desert into paradise, and even stabilizing the local climate.

Water Stories is a community committed to water cycle restoration with films, videos, articles, webinars, live events, and a whole training program for those ready to become practitioners.

https://www.waterstories.com/core-course

https://www.waterstories.com/community