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The Healing Journey |
The Healing Journey began on the Yukon River in 2007 and has since become a global river event.
Utilizing canoes to transport participants via rivers and tributaries from village to village, the Healing Journey focus is gathering traditional knowledge through stories told by river inhabitants, as well as collecting modern water-quality related scientific data along the way.
[Continued from Homepage]
The first Healing Journey began as a request by the Native Elders who lived in the vast Yukon Watershed to assess the health of the Yukon, it's tributaries and all bodies of water within the watershed. After witnessing sharp declines in salmon runs, mysterious health concerns with the fish and other wildlife, they gave instructions to "go out and take the pulse of the river."
Jon Waterhouse, then Assistant Director of the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council, had been working to clean up landfills and other sources of pollution along the banks of the Yukon. Jon was hearing talk of the dwindling salmon and moose populations - both of which are primary food sources for the people who live in this 320,000 square mile watershed.
Jon accepted the directive from his leadership and shortly thereafter he took off from Moosehide, Yukon Territory, Canada in his canoe. His goal, to learn what he could that might help solve these problems on the Yukon.
Knowing that simple discussions with residents along the river would be invaluable on many levels, yet would offer nothing in the way of science, Jon came up with a method of collecting water-quality data while paddling - something which had never been done on any river.
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Scientific probes attached to the canoes transmit real-time water quality samples to the US Geological Survey labs in Denver, CO, USA, while cameras and other recording equipment are enlisted to document oral histories from generations of people who live on the water. This process is now used world-wide.
This unique method of 'mapping' rivers has not only been duplicated in numerous watersheds, it has garnered attention and awards from the U.S. Dept of the Interior and Harvard University, among many others.
That first trip was enlightening for all. In a nutshell, Jon observed the obvious; that when people leave any mess behind, whether it be random camp debris or something more industrial such as toxic chemicals, the widespread effect on all ground water, and the life it sustains, can be profound and long-term. Beyond what each individual can do to restore, preserve and protect their water, incorporating 'clean-up' into any type of construction project contracts is paramount - government or private. Measures like this are a vital step to mitigating the dilemma of dirty water and maintaining our healthy water supply.
By sharing the information we gather on these journeys, we reach a better understanding of what is happening with our water and how we can prevent further degradation of our World's supply.
The Healing Journey spreads a message of environmental stewardship. We heal the water and the water heals us - the dependency is mutual. All river communities can learn from mistakes made by others, and from mistakes made by their own previous generations. Bottom line: we know why pollution occurs... because humans are messy.
Our goal with the Healing Journey is to educate and inspire people to make a difference by changing past behaviors with regard to the natural world around us. People are the key to river/water health but they will only act if they are engaged enough with nature to care about it.
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Jon Waterhouse |
[Continued from Homepage]
Jon joined the US Navy and ended his 20 year career as a decorated Chief Petty Officer.
In 2010 Waterhouse was appointed by President Barack Obama to the 15-member Joint Public Advisory Committee, where he is among representatives from Canada, Mexico, and the United States who are chosen to advise the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). Waterhouse also serves on the Board of the Alaska-Sudan Medical Project as community development director, assisting in the creation of primary medical care facilities in remote areas of South Sudan.
As executive director of the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council (YRITWC), an international treaty organization comprised of seventy Native Tribes and First Nations, Waterhouse now oversees the Healing Journey as a worldwide river event that brings people who are continents apart much closer together, fueling Waterhouse's belief that our shared experiences and concerns for the environment enhance the effort to make wise decisions for the future.
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