The Hudson River Watershed Alliance’s mission is to unite and empower communities to protect our shared waters. We work across the Hudson River watershed to support watershed groups, help communities work together on water issues, and communicate as a collective voice.
A watershed is the area of land from which water drains into a river, stream, or other waterbody. The Hudson River watershed, from Lake Tear of the Clouds in the Adirondacks to New York City, covers 13,400 square miles. Each stream that flows to the Hudson is connected to the health of the river, as is each community that is connected to the Hudson River directly or through its vast network of streams and tributaries. To protect and improve the health of the Hudson River and its ecosystem, we must take a watershed approach.
The Hudson River Watershed Alliance’s Strategic Plan sets our organizational direction, including goals and values. The 2023 Annual Report summarizes the Hudson River Watershed Alliance’s accomplishments and core programs. The Work on Watersheds report compiles the accomplishments and success stories of our local watershed partners.
We are a collaborative network of engaged, informed, and active community groups, organizations, municipalities, agencies, and individuals that work together to ensure a healthy and resilient Hudson River watershed.
We lead educational, capacity-building, and networking events to inform and inspire communities to protect and restore our waters.
We seek to build effective water stewardship by giving people the tools, information, and resources they need.
Our Vision
We envision a healthy Hudson River watershed and communities that support the watershed with meaningful and lasting environmental stewardship. Watershed groups from the Adirondacks to New York City are empowered and respected voices that confidently advocate for healthy watersheds. Residents and visitors understand their connection to the Hudson River and local streams. Community leaders understand the significance of the watershed and the impacts of their decisions on it. Hudson River Watershed Alliance serves as a knowledgeable and trusted ally that supports watershed champions and their efforts towards watershed health and environmental justice.
Core Values
- Healthy Watersheds: We value a sustainable and holistic approach to healthy watersheds that support public health and the natural environment.
- Equity and Inclusion: We respect and strive to amplify the voices of those who have traditionally been excluded from water conservation and environmental decision-making.
- Interdependence: We recognize that past, present, and future people depend on and are integrated with the Hudson River Watershed for its many values.
- Collaboration: We believe the Hudson River watershed and our communities will have a better future if we focus on our similarities and acknowledge our differences while we work together to address watershed-based problems.
- Integrity: We are guided by honesty and ethical principles, and we strive to be a trusted resource and partner for watershed groups, government agencies, and peer organizations.
- Growth through Knowledge: We value and trust different forms of knowledge and science to guide our work, and we recognize opportunity for growth in both success and failure of our undertaking
Why Take a Watershed Approach to Our Work?
The Hudson River watershed, from Lake Tear of the Clouds in the Adirondacks to New York City, covers 13,400 square miles. Each stream that flows to the Hudson is connected to the health of the river, as is each community that is connected to the Hudson River directly or through its vast network of streams and tributaries. The large Hudson River watershed can also be broken down into smaller watersheds, to better align with issues or make management more feasible. To protect and improve the health of the Hudson River and its ecosystem, we must take a watershed approach. This allows Hudson River Watershed Alliance and other watershed stewards to partner and work across city, town, and county lines with our thinking, planning, decision-making, and projects. When we have a specific water quality or flooding problem, we can look to the watershed to better understand the issue and potential solutions. A watershed approach also allows us to consider and integrate water-related social and environmental justice issues that are sometimes overlooked when a narrower approach to a problem is taken.
The Hudson River Watershed Alliance acknowledges that the Hudson River watershed includes the traditional land of indigenous people, including the Munsee Lenape, Wappinger, Mohican, Schaghticoke, Abenaki, Haudenosaunee, Oneida, and Mohawk, whose relationship to the land and water is mutually sustaining and built around the recognition that humans are part of nature, not separate from it.
The Hudson River Watershed Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations from generous supporters like you are vital to support our mission.