Water, drought and catchments

Start here · Where does the water come from?

Two farms can get the same rain and end up with very different prospects. On one, the rain soaks into soil under plant cover. On the other, more of it runs off. Yet even soil that holds rain better can lie in a catchment where wells are failing or a stream is losing water in summer. That gives water work two starting questions. What happens to the water where we stand? And what is happening elsewhere in the catchment that shapes what we can do here?

Read the section on land and water as one field.

Read in depth

Land, Water and Living Stewardship examines how water, soil and cultivation are connected. Living Landscapes brings several places into view.

Follow water over time

Where does water collect after rain? Where does it disappear quickly? What changes between visits? Use the Field Diary to keep what you saw distinct from your working explanation.

How a return visit can become a learning spiral

Three places, three water questions

Doukkala asks how an existing orchard and an open plot might develop under limited water. Better soil cover can help hold rain on the farm. To understand what a change means for the wider area, growers also need to ask how much water they draw and who else depends on it.

Kitgum starts with the care already under way. How much can the nursery keep alive through a dry spell with the water and time available? That question can help determine when to plant more and what support is needed while people wait.

Xochimilco brings the canals into view. Water conditions matter for cultivation, access and wild species. Growers can bring their experience of particular stretches into questions about maintenance and water decisions that extend across the city.

In each place, ask what people can change where they work, who else needs to be involved and what to look for when they return. The seasons of water and the timing of money asks what happens when irrigation agreements or grant periods fall out of step with the needs of soil, plants and the people doing the work.