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Photo Credit: Alan Nyiri

Watershed Soundscape

About

The loss of perennial desert flows after colonial settlement has forever altered the landscape and ecosystems of the Santa Cruz Watershed. As we face the challenges of development, mining, and climate crisis, it is essential to understand our desert rivers and creeks as living waters. The Watershed Soundscape project convenes a dynamic new cohort of university researchers, nonprofits, Indigenous voices, school communities, and creatives. This artist-led initiative creates a multidisciplinary platform to explore drought mitigation and ecological restoration, fusing watershed science with sensory experiences to promote educational outreach grounded in Tucson’s unique sense of place. 

People

Project Impact

• music + art + landscape events at Empire Ranch, WMG Living Lab, and the Patagonia Opera House

• A consortium of 22 ensembles from across Pima County, including high school and community bands will perform Sonoran Rivers: A Celebration of Desert Water. This is a new work by composer Yuanyuan Kay He and poet Alison Hawthorne Deming, inspired by local watershed data

• Tucson Symphony Orchestra marquee performances at Young People's Concerts in May 2025 at the Linda Ronstadt Music Hall

• Guest artist workshops at UA School of Art and Tohono O’odham Community College with environmental artist Heather Bird Harris

• Song workshop for O'odham youth, in partnership with the San Xavier Department of Natural Resources

Sonoran Rivers Classroom Videos

Santa Cruz River Watershed

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