From the Mountains to the Sea

“Kaua e kōrero mo te Awa, me kōrero ki te Awa”
“Do not merely speak of the River, speak instead to the River.”

That is, relate to the River and seek its guidance in all things.
(source: https://www.tepoutupua.nz/te-awa-tupua)

In 2017, the Māori peoples of the Whanganui River inspired the world when after a 175-year battle, the New Zealand law recognized their river as a living entity. 

This monumental act is the legal framework by which the innate relationship of the “River to the People and the People to the River” is upheld, a relationship built on mutual respect, accountability, and care.    

In this short documentary From the Mountains to the Sea, Indigenous leaders from opposite sides of the world come together to travel down the Whanganui River’s fast flowing waters. 

Together, they find healing in generations of shared struggles, and a new vision for the Colorado River – one where it once again has the right to flow from the mountains to the sea.