Emory & Henry College Civic Innovation professor and Emory, Va. resident, Dr. Tal Stanley, is featured in the upcoming PBS documentary, The Story of the New River. The documentary premiered Thursday on Blue Ridge PBS.
The Story of the New River focuses on one of the most prominent features of the Southwest Virginia landscape. By highlighting the interplay between the natural environment, the built environment, and the long human culture and history along the New River, this documentary film offers an understanding of the New as older than can be measured by clock and calendar, but also as a presence that is both vibrant and urgent.
“The Story of the New River builds on insights that have been at the core of the work of the E&H Appalachian Center for Civic Life since its founding in 1996, and everyday inform and direct all of our teaching in the Interdisciplinary Program in Civic Innovation,” says Dr. Stanley. “Although it has been a long time in production, The Story of the New River demonstrates the work ahead of us in Emory & Henry College’s Watershed Project, to tell in new ways the stories of Southwest Virginia and its people.”
Using photographs, interactive maps, diagrams, recorded oral histories, original documents, and videos to draw on the perspective of many people and many histories, The Watershed Project tells stories of Southwest Virginia. The Watershed Project builds on the understanding that it takes many approaches and many stories to tell the truth of a place and its people. Challenging long-held perceptions and enlarging what we know of our histories, The Watershed Project also tells new stories and offers new possibilities for our future in Southwest Virginia.
The Appalachian Center for Civic Life at Emory & Henry provides opportunities for students to be involved in a variety of civic engagement projects that connect with their academic journey while providing real, measurable outcomes for the community. For more information on the Appalachian Center for Civic Life, please visit www.ehc.edu/appalachian-.
