Robert Macfarlane
RIVERS, RIGHTS, REIMAGINED
Over the past decade, Robert Macfarlane’s work has been dedicated to recognising rivers as life-forces, not mere resources. By fusing art and activism, this writer seeks to transform both imagination and legislation regarding rivers. His forthcoming book Is A River Alive? –– about the lives, deaths and rights of rivers worldwide –– answers a powerful “yes” to the question of its title.
In November 2024 Robert wrote ‘Riversong‘, a poem of protest and protection for rivers in the UK and beyond, which was performed at the UK’s biggest ever water protest, the March For Clean Water. He recently filed legal petition in the Ecuadorian court system to recognise the ‘moral authorship’ of the rivers and cloud-forests of northern Ecuador in the co-creation of his ‘Song of the Cedars’. His 2017 film River, narrated by Willem Dafoe and scored by Johnny Greenwood of Radiohead, traces the history, present and future of rivers on Earth. He is a core member of the More Than Human (MOTH) Life Collective, an international and interdisciplinary initiative dedicated to the extension of rights and flourishing across human and more-than-human domains. Follow Robert on Instagram, X or Bluesky to stay up to date.
