watershed

/ˈwôdərˌSHed/

An area of land that channels rainfall and snowmelt into streams, rivers, and eventually, larger bodies of water like lakes and oceans.

Watersheds inspire us

• Healthy watersheds are regenerative, living systems.

• Watersheds transcend generations, reminding us that we are inseparable and interconnected with nature, other species, and each other.

• They remind us of our dependence on the natural world.

• Watersheds provide watering places where we can reconnect and recentre -they are calm places and also places of powerful energy.

• A "watershed moment" is a turning point.

Mission

Our work, rooted in community, solidarity, and hope, exists to build the engagement, leadership, and organizational capacity of youth (ages 18–35). Our focus areas are:

• Regenerative learning systems

• Intergenerational collaboration

• Community building

• Regenerative engagement and leadership

• Mitigating systemic barriers across the youth social and climate justice ecosystem

Values

Regenerative learning and doing. We commit to learning from nature-based systems, and from both youth and legacy organizers. We commit to regenerative doing.

We commit to engagement practices rooted in kindness and love for each other, our planet, and the greater-than- human places and species of our world.

Regenerative leadership. We maintain a leadership and organizational structure of folks across generations. We reject paradigms of extraction, violence, and dominance and commit ourselves to learning and practicing leadership rooted in our inter-connectedness, our mutual dependence on each other, our strengths, limitations, and capacity. We begin by exploring matriarchal, regenerative leadership values and practices.

2026-2028 Project and Programming Focus

1. Produce a film and other resources related to funding and grant writing.

2. Collaborate with BCACC-certified counsellors to provide affordable group and individual counselling for youth social and climate justice organizers.

3. Map the ecosystem to create a web-accessible database of legacy, youth-led, and youth-facing organizations to assist with community building, inter-generational collaboration, mentorship, and on-ramping to social and climate justice work.

4. Work with community partners to find reliable, safe, multipurpose, centrally located, and cost-effective physical spaces where youth can gather, build community, incubate and share ideas.

Vision

A world where youth organizations have power and efficacy to build and sustain positive social change.

YOUTH VOICES

" We need leaders who are not just looking forward to the next innovation, but leaders who understand the past. We need leaders who are courageous. We need leaders who can love... "

— Xiye Bastida

"...the following are needed: spaces for connection with fellow organizers outside of activism; solidarity building through planning and participating in actions together; investing in self care and community care; being committed and accountable to fellow activists, and creating alternative practices to resolve conflict.“

Sabrina Guzman Skotnitsky

PARTNER WITH US!

We seek community-building partnerships, collaborations, funding, and learning opportunities.