Over the River Interview Questions

Primary interviews use a single set of questions:

1. What in your background brought you into this work with rivers?
2. What are the most important successes in river defense have you been involved in?
3. What are the greatest changes you have seen in the conservation and/or environmental movement and where is it going?
4. Who and what are your greatest sources of inspiration - people, mentors, books, art, spiritual, religion etc.
5. If you had just a short time to give a lasting message to young people you may never see again, what would you tell them?
And you can add anything you like to this.

Secondary interviews involve a brief survey and/or telephone interview.

Over the Rio Grande Interviews

The first round of Rio Grande interviews will begin in October this year. CJ McCue, a river guide and artist, agreed to help with contacts here in the Taos/Sante Fe area. In 2010, interviews will take place on the lower Rio Grande especially in the Big Bend area.

Mark Sundin is first on the list.

If you know anyone who has made an important contribution to saving the Rio Grande, please let us know.

contact: dhovertheriver598 {at} gmail.com

Over the Upper Mississippi River Interviews

Photo: Mark Van Patten of Missouri Stream Team

Interviews for the Mid to Upper Mississippi are on-going. Due to schedule delays in other parts of the country, time in the St. Louis area was cut short. I will return to pick up more interviews at a later date. Environmental Justice advocates for East St. Louis are especially needed at this point. Another area of interest is the long-term history of the Corps of Engineers on the Upper Mississippi.

Interviews to date include:
Calvin Fremling - author Immortal River
Rip Sparks - National Great Rivers Research and Education Center
David Conrad - National Wildlife Federation
Bruce Hannon - Prof. Emeritus of Southern Illinois University
Ken Lubinski - USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center
Mark Van Patten - Missouri Stream Team
David Wilson - East West Gateway Council of Governments
Ron Colemen - Open Space Council St. Louis
Bob Williams - SIUE retired Rivers Project & Clean Water Celebration
Ron Yarbrough - formerly St.Louis District USACE contractor
Harry Hendrickson - retired IL Science Teachers Association
Claire Schosser - River Des Peres Watershed Coalition
Danelle Haake - River Des Peres Watershed Coalition
Chad Pregracke - founder Living Lands and Waters
Jeff Barrow - Missouri River Relief
Vicki Richmond - Missouri River Relief
Kristian Gustavson - Below the Surface
Annie Hoagland - survey, Great Rivers Land Trust
Ben Griffiths - survey, New City Kids
Kathy Andria - interview pending

There are other interviews, partial or as background surveys and literature. All are greatly appreciated.

If you know or have heard of someone whose work made an important contribution to the Upper Mississippi, please contact:
Diana Hartel diana.hartel {at} gmail.com
Doug Meyer at SIUE domeyer {at} siue.edu

Over the NYC Watershed to Bronx River Interviews

Interviews on the NYC water supply and its relationship to the Bronx River, the last remaining river within the city, were finished for this round as of early April.

Interviews include:
Ruth Anderberg - Bronx River starting in the 1970s
Nancy Wallace - Bronx River starting in the 1980s
Alexie Torres-Fleming - Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice (interview pending)
Majora Carter - founder Sustainable South Bronx (interview pending)
Jenny Hoffner - American Rivers
Dart Westphal - Mosholu Preservation Corporation
Linda Cox - Bronx River Alliance
Dan Davis - DEP Catskills
Jack Isaac - DEC Catskills
Harry Jameson III - Town Tinker Tube, Esopus
Chester Karwatowski - Trout Unlimited, Ashokan-Pepacton
There is a great talk on TED by Majora Carter - highly recommended.
Majora Carter TED Talk
Michelle Spark - interview pending

If you know someone we have left out who has something to contribute to this project, please contact us through this blog or through local contacts:
Bronx River Alliance, Anne-Marie or Damian
Michelle Spark of the Esopus Creek Planning Council: spark.michelle {at} gmail.com

Over the Chattahoochee River Interviews

Longleaf Pine Forest - Photo Margery Bouris

Interviews for the Chattahoochee River underwent a second round ending April 28, 2009. To date they include:
Sally Bethea - Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper
Bill Eisenhauer - community activist Atlanta
Jerry Stober - formerly of the EPA Region 4
James Hathorn - US Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile
Bruce Morton - West Atlanta Watershed Alliance
Na'Taki Osborne - West Atlanta Watershed Alliance and NWF
Sherril Marcus - civil rights and environmental justice advocate
Jim Kulstad - Common Cause Georgia
Jenny Hoffner - American Rivers
Howard Marshall - formerly of the EPA Region 4
Jacqueline Echols - EJ advocate
Ron Warnken - National Wildlife Federation
Mark Williams - US ACE Lake Lanier
Melissa Samet - American Rivers
Aris Georgakakos - Georgia Water Resources (pending)

Return to Georgia is planned for spring, 2010. Meanwhile, interviews may be carried out by telephone. Please email Diana Hartel diana.hartel {at} gmail.com for further information.

Over the Klamath River Interviews

Klamath River interviews began in October and are in a second round this summer.

Interviews to date include:
Roger Smith of Fish Wildlife, Petey Brucker and Geba Greenberg of the Salmon River Restoration Council, Alice Kilham, Greg Addington of Klamath Water Users Association, and Merv George Jr of Klamath River Intertribal Fish and Water Commission and now with the US Forest Service Region 4. The photos on the left were taken by David Lorenz Winston of Petey Brucker, Merv George Jr, and Geba Greenberg respectively.