Description: Diana Cervantes is an Independent Visual Journalist based in NYC and her hometown of the Southwest. She focuses on long form narratives regarding the environment, human-animal bonds, science and conservation.
From the headwaters to the lost reaches, the Upper Rio Grande is under threat, and so are the people and ecosystems that rely on it. Climate change has already shrunk the snowpacks, dried soils and increased evaporation.
Human decision-making, resource management and policy continue to radically shift the trajectory of this lifeline in the high desert. This aridification has made precious water scarce for more people, exacerbating pressing issues in agriculture, tribal sovereignty and conservation. Reporter Danielle Prokop and Photojournalist Diana Cervantes traveled 700 miles along the river, documenting people adapting to a changed climate from Colorado through New Mexico and into Texas.
From the headwaters to the lost reaches, the Upper Rio Grande is under threat, and so are the people and ecosystems that rely on it. Source New Mexico is rolling out the series in 14 parts, starting Monday, Jan. 30, at the headwaters in Colorado.