Water rising is a celebration of the river, a good flood. Floods happen because people settled in floodplains. Had we left the space for the rivers to flood freely, water rising would be life-giving. Thanks to that very phenomenon, river valleys are rich in riparian forests, the most valuable habitats and ecosystems. We got to delve into the topic of water rising this year on the Oder river. We headed there on the World Rivers Day to celebrate the place where the river鈥檚 embankment was moved away to return some space to the river and thus create an environmentally-friendly detention basin. The 鈥淲ater rising鈥� project is all about communities, sisterhood, friendship and motherhood. It鈥檚 about how activism brings people together and strengthens relationships, but also how it works the other way round 鈥� how friendships and relationships can make us efficient male and female activists. It is also about good anger and collective action.
Cecylia Malik
Painter, visual artist and environmental activist. Author of many artistic projects, among which the most important ones are: 鈥�365 Trees鈥�, 鈥�6 Rivers鈥�, 鈥淏ia艂ka鈥檚 Braids鈥�. Co-initiator of the 鈥淎lcon Blue Collective鈥� campaign to protect Krakow鈥檚 Zakrz贸wek from urbanisation and co-creator of the cyclical 鈥淐ritical Water Mass鈥� event on the Vistula river. Co-founder of the CSW Wiewi贸rka association. Initiator of the 鈥淧olish Mothers on the stump鈥� protest against LEX Szyszko in 2017. Member of the Save the Rivers Coalition. Author and leader of Polish social campaign 鈥淩iver Sisters鈥�. Author of the documentary 鈥淧aradise on Earth鈥� about the love of a homeless couple. Winner of many awards, including Poland鈥檚 Ecology in 2017 and Katarzyna Kobro Award in 2018. Cecylia Malik brings art and activism together, cares for the meaningfulness and effectiveness of her actions, and together with various experts she organises protests in the form of happenings and works of arts in public space.