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Description
In this project we engage local communities in activities aimed at changing people''s perception of rivers. We would like rivers to be treated subjectively, as a natural and cultural entity and part of the community''s heritage, rather than objectively, as a threat or a means to extract natural resources. We are implementing the project in four locations. It is a response to the problems that exist in various municipalities and regions of Poland with regard to the rivers that flow through them. In the city of Hajnówka, we want to stop the dumping of chemical waste into the Leśna River by a local company. Residents have been fighting for the cleanliness of the river for many years, in cooperation with committed councillors. In the municipalities of Grodziczno and Nowe Miasto Lubawskie, we help residents to build their local identity, of which the river Wel is an important natural and cultural element. In the municipalities of Rogoźno and Oborniki, we support residents who are fighting to preserve the continuity of the Wełna, Flint and Mała Wełna rivers and remove barriers to living organisms from them. In the city of Gorlice, we are helping to unblock the Sękówka river by removing the existing water steps. As part of our project activities, we solve identified natural and/or watchdog challenges by working together with experts and local residents. Together with the local community, we carry out the so-called bio-blitz surveys and hydromorphological studies in the rivers involved in the project. We build and strengthen people''s emotional ties to the rivers by mobilising residents to take action. We prepare recommendations for local authorities. We develop case studies to help develop the competencies of those involved in the Save the Rivers Coalition in terms of cooperation and activating local communities.