Our Book
I Am River is a children’s book that centres the St Lawrence as narrator of its own story, encouraging readers to empathize and engage with the River as a holistic entity. In the book, the River tells how it was formed from glaciers melting, and describes its various eco-zones. The River further explains how it can be helped or harmed by human activity, and calls upon children to treat it kindly and with respect. The art style is painterly and detailed: 51 plant and animal species and six human communities are depicted and named within.
Our Stories
Naomi and Emanuelle are both pursuing bachelor’s degrees in the environmental sciences in Montreal, Canada. Naomi has a background in early childhood education, and Emanuelle in science and conservation outreach. Through our work, we each noticed that children in Montreal were often unaware of the St Lawrence River. When our paths converged through an Ocean Wise youth program, we decided to do something about it; as a team, we created, co-authored and illustrated I am River.
In 2025, Olivia, another student in environmental studies, joined the team to help expand the I Am River mission to a French-speaking demographic.
Our Workshops
I am River in practice! We come to schools, community centres, and camps and lead hands-on inquiry based workshops based on the book for K - grade 4! Each page acts as a prompt for discussion, experimentation, or movement. At the end, we wrap up with a reflection activity.
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