RIVER ENGAGE 2025
December 2025
petang, bali, indonesia

Rivers are vital habitats for humans and other animals. Historically, the River Valley Civilization, or River Valley Civilization that began around 4000-3100 BC in places such as the Nile and Tigris, marked the beginning of the Neolithic or Young Stone Age, in which humans began to manipulate and modify their environment to cultivate crops, and abandoned the style of migratory life and hunting. To this day, we see big cities living along the river's lines - like New York (Hudson), Paris (Seine), London (Thames), Bangkok (Chao Praya), and Denpasar (Ayung River), because it would be difficult to live without water. With a growing human population and a high demand for rivers, we share this valuable resource with other species, such as reptiles and amphibians. Their role for the ecosystem is diverse, one of which is controlling rats and mosquitoes. Unfortunately, one of the direct interactions between us and them is the contribution of our waste being carried away, or deposited on the riverbanks. Understanding and sharing how to understand the impact of our waste in the riverbank to the lives of many species will improve our collective knowledge in the dynamics of riparian ecosystem, and in the long run helps us to formulate best strategy of river restoration.

River Engage is a collective event that connects local residents to scientists, conservationists, and artists to get together for their river through science.

Continuing its first event in 2022, this year, Species Obscura and Indonesia Herpetofauna Foundation will deliver a comprehensive survey workshop, authority engagement, and clean-up.

This year's assessment workshop will be incorporated with fish, arthropods, and mammals biodiversity survey, which are important indicators for the riparian ecosystem, in addition to macroplastics and herpetofauna assessments that are already in the curriculum in the previous event.

River Engage 2025 is supported by:

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