We are excited to announce the release of the fifth annual youth art zine Ripples, published by the University of Victoria Sustainability Project with support from NatureKids BC and the POLIS Water Sustainability Project.
Part love letter and part call to action, Ripples captures the beauty and ecological significance of the watersheds that cradle the places we call home. The zine is a platform for young voices, artists, writers, and photographers aged 6 to 25 to explore their connections to fresh water through creative expression. In an age being shaped by rapid climate change, the relationships between young people and water are also changing rapidly, especially when considering our relationships to water held in ice.
“Smoking Spirit” by Peter Brandes (age 9)
The theme of this year’s issue, Stories Told by Ice, was inspired by the UN’s World Water Day 2025 focus on glacier preservation.
“In the past five-years, we’ve received more than two-hundred submissions of art, writing, and photography from kids and youth,” writes the Ripples editorial team. “The connections children and youth share with water and ice are powerful and profound. These works tell stories of hope, fear, reflection, reverence, and love, tying together the past, present, and future.”
“The story of a stream” by Kamilla Hindmarch
“Ice is more than a physical entity: it is a storyteller, a timekeeper, and a crucial component of our watersheds,” said Kamilla Hindmarch, POLIS Work Study Student and member of the Ripples editorial team. “It shapes our land, influences our climate, and sustains communities and ecosystems that countless beings depend on. As climate change accelerates, these frozen storytellers are changing rapidly, encouraging us to listen and learn.”
Ripples is a celebration, collaborative reflection, an invitation to rethink watershed governance, and an urgent reminder that action is needed to support the health of our watersheds — including our ice, snow, and glaciers — now and into the future.
As the editorial team writes, “Holding an endless love of water and hope for the future, we hope this year’s issue of Ripples sparks a deep appreciation and awe for the transformative power of art and the powerful voices of the young people who make it.”
We invite you to explore Ripples 2025.
