Living River Exhibit

The Living River Exhibition is currently on display at the University of New Mexico, and surely, our Colorado river basin map is right there with it!

We first wrote about this project back in 2023, when conservation photographer Dave Showalter approached us to use our custom Colorado watershed map in his book, Living River: The Promise of the Mighty Colorado. Since then, the NGO put together a travelling exhibition, bringing the story of the endangered Colorado River to communities across the watershed.

The exhibit is based on the book published by Braided River, and made possible by the generous support of the Walton Family Foundation. At its heart is a powerful message: the Colorado River, a 249,000-square-mile watershed sustaining 40 million people, diverse wildlife, and millions of migrating birds, is shrinking. Global heating, damming and industrial farming have dramatically altered a river that flowed freely for 6 million years. The terms of the 1922 Colorado River Compact are currently being re-negotiated among the seven basin states. As the exhibit puts it: this is our moment.

Through Dave Showalter's stunning photography and storytelling, the exhibition invites viewers on a journey to a living river: one that holds promise, resilience, and hope for the future. Showalter invites us to see the Colorado River not as a resource, but as a living, breathing system that shapes culture, community, and the future of the American West.

The exhibition is on display at the University of New Mexico until 24 April 2026. If you're in the area, don't miss it! More information at LivingRiverColorado.org and BraidedRiver.org. Want to host a Living River Exhibit? Contact Living River here.

You can also own a piece of this story: our custom Colorado river basin map is available as a fine art paper print in the Map Shop.

Images in this article are screenshots of the Living River website and feature David Showalter's photography. Visit them here.