|
Introducing Southlands |
 |
|
The cover of issue #1 of Southlands, a new magazine from Boyce Upholt. Courtesy: Boyce Upholt |
|
Hi ,
Frequent readers of this newsletter will recall Friend of the Desk Boyce Upholt, the author of "The Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the Mississippi," which we've featured here before.
Now, we're excited to share his announcement of a new publication in the Mississippi River Basin, Southlands, "a media company celebrating the wild South in all its forms—and the diverse ways Southerners connect with the natural world."
We're always excited to see a new environmental publication in the Basin, so we invited Boyce to share a few thoughts about Southlands.
Here's Boyce:
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Boyce Upholt, author and founder of Southlands |
|
|
"If you’d asked me 10 years ago what the Mississippi River was like, I would have guessed that it had been turned into one shipping channel—mighty, sure, but engineered, polluted, toxic. If it was a site worth visiting, that was only because it was so important to our nation’s history and commerce. But then, for a magazine assignment, I spent three days and two nights canoeing on the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers in Mississippi and Louisiana. What I discovered changed my life.
|
|
|
|
The river was wild, obviously, and beautiful. I began to spend more and more time there, wandering the river’s edges and backchannels; eventually, I wrote a book about the place, The Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the Mississippi. Happily, that’s given me the chance to travel the country and evangelize about the need for people to reconnect with the Mississippi—one of the country’s most gorgeous landscapes, though underrecognized as such.
|
 |
|
From Boyce Upholt's canoe trip that changed his perspective on the Mississippi River.
Courtesy: Boyce Upholt |
|
While researching the book, I got to explore much of the Mississippi (plus the Ohio and Missouri, too). But it's here in the South where I've done my deepest explorations—the “Lower” river, as geologists call the southern river, has become my definition of home. (As an aspiring writer who grew up in Connecticut, it’s not where I expected to wind up!) And over the decade I worked on The Great River, I realized the Mississippi was not the only overlooked landscape down in the South: As a country, when we imagine our most desirable landscapes, our minds tend to drift toward the big landscapes out west.
That’s become the heart of my next project: Southlands, a biannual print journal celebrating the connection between the people in this region and our landscapes and habitats. Our first issue, which will ship in just a few weeks, features both award-winning writers and emerging voices. The theme of the issue is “the nature of the Southern thing,” which is meant as a chance to explore what sets this region apart.
The cover feature explains how the Gulf Coast has become the cradle of managed fire; we’ve got Kim Cross, a New York Times-bestselling writer, reflecting on what a hunting camp has meant to the members of her mixed-race family; and, relevant to the Ag & Water Desk, my own contribution looks at how gravel biking might be an economic salve for the Arkansas Delta. Our goal is not just to document the South; we want to build a community—spanning from the Mississippi watershed to the Gulf Coast, from the Smoky Mountains to the Ozarks.
The South has always been a region defined by its relationship with water—rivers and bayous, storms and floods, drought and abundance. That's why I'm so grateful for the work organizations like the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk are doing. We're all part of the same mission, really: helping people understand and protect the landscapes that define us. If you’re interested in digging deeper into the South in particular, I’d love if you order our first issue or even become a supporting member of the community.
Learn more at southlandsmag.com."
|
|
|
|
Michael here again. Congrats on the launch, Boyce, and we're excited to see the first edition.
And speaking of the range of the Mississippi River Basin: we're highlighting more of the local work our Desk fellows produce for their newsrooms, in addition to collaborations with our central editorial staff. Here are a few recent pieces from Arkansas to North Dakota.
|
|
Local News |
|
|
|
|
|
By Lucas Dufalla, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Tonnage on the Arkansas River was down 18% in August, continuing the year's trend of a nearly 19% decline in waterborne commerce on the river, according to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers data. Local port leaders attribute the decrease to seasonal fluctuations in certain sectors, an ongoing economic slowdown and the impact of tariffs. |
|
 |
|
A barge loaded with cargo on the Arkansas River passes under the Baring Cross Railroad Bridge near downtown Little Rock. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Colin Murphey) |
|
|
|
|
|
By Avery Martinez, First Alert 4
At a large meeting with legislators, generals, advocates and IEPA, Metro East homeowners hope for a flood-free future. |
|
 |
|
Screenshot courtesy First Alert 4 |
|
|
|
|
|
By Gabrielle Nelson, Buffalo's Fire
The United Tribes Technical College campus is in full swing as students are back for the fall. And this year, they have a new place to relax between classes.The medicine wheel on Rocky Boy Lane and All Nations Circle that had fallen into disrepair has been revitalized and the area is refurbished with Native plants and benches. Campus leaders first created the medicine garden in 1995. |
|
 |
|
Sonia Ciaverelli, who restored the UTTC medicine wheel in two and a half months, addresses students and faculty at an event celebrating its reveal, Bismarck, North Dakota. (Marcus Taken Alive)
|
|
|
|
A final note: we're looking for our next group of great partners! The Ag & Water Desk is accepting applications for our third cohort, which begins next summer. We'll be adding five newsrooms through our partnership with Report for America. The deadline to apply is Oct. 20, and you can read more here.
Thanks for reading. More next week from across the Basin. |
|
|
|
|
Sincerely,
Michael Crowe
Operations Manager,
Ag & Water Desk |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
