The River Keeper

Jean-Baptiste Moreau, 67, retired from the French water agency but continues as volunteer "river keeper" for a stretch of the Dordogne.

"Officially, I monitor water quality and fish populations. Unofficially, I'm the river's memory. I know every pool where trout hide, every gravel bed where they spawn. I've watched this water for forty years.

"The changes break my heart. Species vanishing, temperatures rising, flows diminishing. But also recovery—otters returning, salmon attempting comeback, water cleaner than in decades. Rivers are resilient if given chance.

"My beat includes three villages. I know everyone, their relationships with water. The old farmer who still irrigates by flood method his grandfather taught. The British couple restoring watermill. The Moroccan family who picnic by the swimming hole every Sunday.

"Knowledge must be passed on. I take school groups, teaching them to read water. 'See those bubbles? Decomposition—too much nitrogen.' 'That brown algae? Iron from upstream mine, closed fifty years but still leaking.' Every lesson connects science to story.

"The Vietnamese family who bought the fishing shop understand rivers. Different continent, same wisdom. They stock traditional French tackle but also introduce Asian techniques. Tenkara rods next to traditional cane poles. Evolution, not replacement.

"I document everything. Water temperature daily, species counts, unusual events. Also human stories—who fished where, what they caught, their theories about changes. Science needs data. Future needs stories.

"My successor will likely be Amadou, young man from Senegal studying hydrology. He combines scientific training with intuitive understanding. Watches water like reading personality. Rivers speak to those who listen, regardless of mother tongue.

"I won't see the Dordogne fully restored. That's generational work. But I've kept faith, maintained records, taught youth. That's enough. Rivers outlive us all. Our job is keeping them alive for those who come after."