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Rivers and Life
Overview
Revealing how the cultures and lives of millions of ordinary people are shaped by the magnificent waters they live along. River by river, we explore six of the world's most iconic watercourses, tracing their routes, their histories and their changing lives, telling the compelling stories of the life that's lived along their banks.
Status
Ended
Created By
Amanda Rees, Nia Dryhurst, Nia Ceidiog
Network
National Geographic
Seasons & Episodes
Season 1
Episodes
Amazon
The steamy jungles of the Amazon region reverberate with the sound of screeches, growls and grunts. These are the noises of creatures hidden in the trees vying with one another for survival in the forest.
Ganges
The Ganges is the most spiritually revered river on Earth. For Hindus, Mother Ganga is a sacred spirit to be worshipped. It rises in an ice-cave in the Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal. The holy river is a source of cleansing for sins, a place of purification. But the Ganges has become so badly polluted that it is dangerous to bathe in it let alone to drink from it.
Mississippi
The Mississippi is a river of sound - music, wildlife, voices, weather, even the sound of the river itself. This is the iconic North American river, home to paddle-steamers, Mark Twain, a key route in the story of slavery, and of New Orleans. The devastating flood of 1927 and the hurricane of 2005 laid bare the divisions that still exist in the worlds richest nation.
Nile
The Nile encapsulates the story of ancient civilisation and the story of modern conflict and modern consumerism. From the dawn of civilization the waters of ancient Egypt have facilitated their entire economy, culture and religion. Were it not for the capricious forces of the Nile, the enduring architectural edifices of the Pyramids might never have been built.
Rhine
It's an inspiration and a thing of beauty in itself but in addition the Rhine is also an industrial and economic force making it the busiest waterway in the world. It flows from the Swiss mountains through Austria, Germany, France and Luxembourg to the Netherlands. Many densely populated cities and towns are clustered along the River, bringing the total population of the Rhine Basin to approximately 50 million. The history of the Rhine is the history of Europes divisions and also its unity.
Yangtze
The Yangtze basin is home to 400 million people, making it one of the most densely populated river basins on earth. All those people have learned to live over generations with floods and disasters but thats about to change.
Top Cast
John Morgan
Himself - Host
