An Anima Mundi project
A project rooted in local action, with a global outlook.
Project presentation
From the water of the Arieș Valley to the planet’s entire web of life.
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Aqua Mater. The essential role of water in the ecosystem.
A project rooted in local action, with a global outlook.
Organisation: Anima Mundi, a non-governmental association.
Location: the Arieș Valley, Apuseni Mountains.
The central idea: water connects and nourishes the planet’s entire web of life. It brings together the ecosystem, health, climate and economy, and its relationship with mountains and forests is the most tangible expression of this bond.
The mission: Anima Mundi promotes water’s essential role for the planet’s entire web of life, including humanity, and cultivates an appreciation of water as a substance indispensable to existence: real respect, not merely professed respect.
The hydrological crisis caused by climate change deepens an existing crisis: we fail to respect water, polluting it excessively and wasting it.
The World Meteorological Organization reports that 2024 was the sixth consecutive year in which most of the planet’s river basins experienced conditions outside the normal range.
In 2026, the crisis deepened.
On the Arieș, the authorities restricted water use, and some tributaries ran dry. In September, the Danube’s flow at Baziaș fell to 1,250 cubic metres per second, a new record low for that month. Drought affected half the territory of the EU and the United Kingdom.
We treat water as a cheap commodity rather than the resource on which all forms of life depend.
And against this backdrop, we waste a large share of it. Public water networks worldwide lose 30% of the water supplied to them; in Romania, the figure is almost half.
Nor do we care enough for forests and mountains, the planet’s water towers. Deforestation destroys 10.9 million hectares of forest each year.
Through information panels placed at 13 springs in the Arieș Valley, we convey to the community a continuous message of respect for water, which we reinforce through tailored brochures for children in schools along the river.
Together with some of the children, we are creating the NaturAma Club, which regularly carries out educational and artistic activities, field observations and clean-up sessions.
It is involved in organising a festival, Arieș Day and camps through which the message of respect for water and biodiversity becomes national and, gradually, international.
In time, some club members will become guardians of the Arieș Valley through their chosen professions and their passions.
Through the book ‘The Wisdom of Water’ and the multimedia centre of the future Aqua Mater Centre, we carry water’s message across the country and around the world.
The book also serves as a source for brochures and a guide dedicated to respect for water and biodiversity.
The multimedia centre creates written, audio and video materials in Romanian and English, develops a digital platform containing an online mini-encyclopaedia about water and biodiversity, and regularly broadcasts programmes dedicated to water and nature.
The Aqua Mater Centre, which we will build from the ground up, is the bond that unites all the project’s activities. It is a space for ongoing study and observation of water and biodiversity.
The multimedia centre operates within it, and socio-cultural events and themed camps take place there. It also hosts visitors as it develops.
The centre contributes to the area’s cultural and economic development, and through its functions, local action becomes a message shared nationally and globally. In this way, an appreciation of water and biodiversity reaches as many people as possible.
Amid today’s climate crisis, every local action has global implications, because everything within the ecosystem is connected. Water evaporating in the Arieș Valley may fall as rain thousands of kilometres away. And the Aqua Mater model can be replicated in any valley in the Carpathians.
The main beneficiaries are the people of the Arieș Valley and those who take part directly in the project’s activities.
Yet the ultimate beneficiaries may be all the people of the planet, because climate and water know no borders and are not local phenomena, but global ones that call for our attention, especially in these hot times.
By acting intelligently at a local level, we send positive ripples around the world. Everything is connected.
So far, Anima Mundi:
In 2027, we intend to:
In 2028, we intend to:
| Local action: panels, brochures, the NaturAma Club, themed trails and clean-ups | 31,000 € |
|---|---|
| Events: the NaturAma festival, camp and Arieș Day | 30,000 € |
| The book, digital platform and multimedia centre | 18,000 € |
| Off-road vehicle, fuel and water-monitoring equipment | 38,000 € |
| Team and administration | 43,000 € |
Total: approximately €160,000
The budget is indicative and is adjusted according to the workload, number of employees, scale of events and changes in prices.
| Land, once identified, together with architectural design, permits and utility connections | 115,000 € |
|---|---|
| Phase 1: the main building, approximately 250 m², with study spaces, an events room, multimedia studio and library, including equipment and furnishings | 440,000 € |
| Phase 2: accommodation for camps and visitors, and outdoor works | 330,000 € |
Total: approximately €885,000
Costs are estimates and are adjusted according to the land, final design and changes in prices.
The team is complemented by volunteers:
The core team is taking shape and will grow as the project develops and funding is secured.
The Aqua Mater Centre is designed to gradually generate a growing share of the income it needs to operate.
Its own income comes from camps, festivals, hosting visitors and the sale of promotional materials.
In addition, Anima Mundi ensures the project’s continuity through fundraising campaigns and grants. The diversity of sources protects the project from dependence on a single source of funding.
Water is essential to the planet’s entire ecosystem. Wherever there is life, there is always water.
Healthy water is essential to every living organism on the planet and vital to the functioning and preservation of the natural environment.
Council of the European Union, water policy
Developing and maintaining a secure and equitable water future underpins prosperity and peace for all.
United Nations World Water Development Report, 2024
Anima Mundi invites you to join this journey of respect for the planet’s entire web of life.
Every contribution matters. You can support the whole project or one part of it through money, goods or services: measuring equipment, materials for panels, transport, architectural services or accommodation for camps.
Support through funding or a donation · Work with us as a partner · Take part as a volunteer
Petrea Ciortan, President of Anima Mundi and Project Manager · anima.ong · petrea@anima.ong
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The project in detail
The hydrological crisis caused by climate change deepens an existing crisis: we fail to respect water, polluting it excessively and wasting it.
The World Meteorological Organization reports that 2024 was the sixth consecutive year in which most of the planet’s river basins experienced conditions outside the normal range.
In 2026, the crisis deepened.
On the Arieș, the authorities restricted water use, and some tributaries ran dry. In September, the Danube’s flow at Baziaș fell to 1,250 cubic metres per second, a new record low for that month. Drought affected half the territory of the EU and the United Kingdom.
We treat water as a cheap commodity rather than the resource on which all forms of life depend.
And against this backdrop, we waste a large share of it. Public water networks worldwide lose 30% of the water supplied to them; in Romania, the figure is almost half.
Nor do we care enough for forests and mountains, the planet’s water towers. Deforestation destroys 10.9 million hectares of forest each year.
Through information panels placed at 13 springs in the Arieș Valley, we convey to the community a continuous message of respect for water, which we reinforce through tailored brochures for children in schools along the river.
Together with some of the children, we are creating the NaturAma Club, which regularly carries out educational and artistic activities, field observations and clean-up sessions.
It is involved in organising a festival, Arieș Day and camps through which the message of respect for water and biodiversity becomes national and, gradually, international.
In time, some club members will become guardians of the Arieș Valley through their chosen professions and their passions.
Through the book ‘The Wisdom of Water’ and the multimedia centre of the future Aqua Mater Centre, we carry water’s message across the country and around the world.
The book also serves as a source for brochures and a guide dedicated to respect for water and biodiversity.
The multimedia centre creates written, audio and video materials in Romanian and English, develops a digital platform containing an online mini-encyclopaedia about water and biodiversity, and regularly broadcasts programmes dedicated to water and nature.
The Aqua Mater Centre, which we will build from the ground up, is the bond that unites all the project’s activities. It is a space for ongoing study and observation of water and biodiversity.
The multimedia centre operates within it, and socio-cultural events and themed camps take place there. It also hosts visitors as it develops.
The centre contributes to the area’s cultural and economic development, and through its functions, local action becomes a message shared nationally and globally. In this way, an appreciation of water and biodiversity reaches as many people as possible.
Amid today’s climate crisis, every local action has global implications, because everything within the ecosystem is connected. Water evaporating in the Arieș Valley may fall as rain thousands of kilometres away. And the Aqua Mater model can be replicated in any valley in the Carpathians.
The main beneficiaries are the people of the Arieș Valley and those who take part directly in the project’s activities.
Yet the ultimate beneficiaries may be all the people of the planet, because climate and water know no borders and are not local phenomena, but global ones that call for our attention, especially in these hot times.
By acting intelligently at a local level, we send positive ripples around the world. Everything is connected.
So far, Anima Mundi:
In 2027, we intend to:
In 2028, we intend to:
| Local action: panels, brochures, the NaturAma Club, themed trails and clean-ups | 31,000 € |
|---|---|
| Events: the NaturAma festival, camp and Arieș Day | 30,000 € |
| The book, digital platform and multimedia centre | 18,000 € |
| Off-road vehicle, fuel and water-monitoring equipment | 38,000 € |
| Team and administration | 43,000 € |
| Total: approximately | 160,000 € |
The budget is indicative and is adjusted according to the workload, number of employees, scale of events and changes in prices.
| Land, once identified, together with architectural design, permits and utility connections | 115,000 € |
|---|---|
| Phase 1: the main building, approximately 250 m², with study spaces, an events room, multimedia studio and library, including equipment and furnishings | 440,000 € |
| Phase 2: accommodation for camps and visitors, and outdoor works | 330,000 € |
| Total: approximately | 885,000 € |
Costs are estimates and are adjusted according to the land, final design and changes in prices.
The team is complemented by volunteers:
The core team is taking shape and will grow as the project develops and funding is secured.
The Aqua Mater Centre is designed to gradually generate a growing share of the income it needs to operate.
Its own income comes from camps, festivals, hosting visitors and the sale of promotional materials.
In addition, Anima Mundi ensures the project’s continuity through fundraising campaigns and grants. The diversity of sources protects the project from dependence on a single source of funding.
Water is essential to the planet’s entire ecosystem. Wherever there is life, there is always water.
Healthy water is essential to every living organism on the planet and vital to the functioning and preservation of the natural environment.
Council of the European Union, water policy
Developing and maintaining a secure and equitable water future underpins prosperity and peace for all.
United Nations World Water Development Report, 2024
Anima Mundi invites you to join this journey of respect for the planet’s entire web of life.
Every contribution matters. You can support the whole project or one part of it through money, goods or services: measuring equipment, materials for panels, transport, architectural services or accommodation for camps.
Support through funding or a donation · Work with us as a partner · Take part as a volunteer
Petrea Ciortan, President of Anima Mundi and Project Manager · anima.ong · petrea@anima.ong
Petrea Ciortan
President of Anima Mundi and Project Manager
petrea@anima.ong · anima.ong
Data and references
Figures are accompanied by the relevant periods and indicator definitions. The project’s activities, plans and budgets are presented by Anima Mundi.
WMO reports that approximately one third of the world’s river basins experienced normal conditions in 2024; the remainder were above or below normal. It was the sixth consecutive year of imbalance. The baseline for river flows is the 1991–2020 average.
At the end of July 2026, 50% of the territory of the EU and the United Kingdom was at one of the drought monitoring levels: watch, warning or alert. The alert level covered 9%. The data relate to 21–31 July and were updated on 10 August.
For 14–15 September 2026, INHGA reported a flow of 1,250 m³/s where the Danube enters Romania at Baziaș, compared with the long-term September average of 3,800 m³/s.
The operator announced a water supply interruption in Filea de Jos on 12–14 August 2026 due to prolonged drought and reduced water availability. It asked residents to avoid using mains drinking water for agriculture, gardening and livestock.
In its bulletin for 14–15 September 2026, INHGA listed the Arieș Basin among those with flows below 30% of long-term monthly averages.
The 2019 study estimates non-revenue water at approximately 30% of the volume supplied to water systems worldwide, or around 126 billion m³ per year. This global reference estimate draws on available data and estimates for countries with insufficient information.
The table on page 28 reports non-revenue water (NRW) of 44% nationally, 50% for major regional operators and 27% for large municipal operators. The report explains the distinction between physical leakage and apparent losses, such as metering errors.
FAO estimates global deforestation at an average of 10.9 million hectares per year in 2015–2025. Net forest area loss, after accounting for forest expansion, is a different indicator: 4.12 million hectares per year over the same period.
The Council of the European Union explains the role of healthy water for every living organism and for the functioning and preservation of the natural environment.
The United Nations World Water Development Report 2024 explains how a secure and equitable water future supports prosperity and peace. The quotation on this page is drawn from the English-language report.
Aqua Mater
The central idea: water connects and nourishes the planet’s entire web of life. It brings together the ecosystem, health, climate and economy, and its relationship with mountains and forests is the most tangible expression of this bond.
Aqua Mater
The mission: Anima Mundi promotes water’s essential role for the planet’s entire web of life, including humanity, and cultivates an appreciation of water as a substance indispensable to existence: real respect, not merely professed respect.
Sources and context
WMO reports that approximately one third of the world’s river basins experienced normal conditions in 2024; the remainder were above or below normal. It was the sixth consecutive year of imbalance. The baseline for river flows is the 1991–2020 average.
View the sourceSources and context
At the end of July 2026, 50% of the territory of the EU and the United Kingdom was at one of the drought monitoring levels: watch, warning or alert. The alert level covered 9%. The data relate to 21–31 July and were updated on 10 August.
View the sourceSources and context
For 14–15 September 2026, INHGA reported a flow of 1,250 m³/s where the Danube enters Romania at Baziaș, compared with the long-term September average of 3,800 m³/s.
The document confirms the flow, date and comparison with the monthly average; it does not establish a historic record.
View the sourceSources and context
The operator announced a water supply interruption in Filea de Jos on 12–14 August 2026 due to prolonged drought and reduced water availability. It asked residents to avoid using mains drinking water for agriculture, gardening and livestock.
The source documents the interruption of the public water supply in Filea de Jos; it does not identify tributaries that have run dry.
View the sourceSources and context
In its bulletin for 14–15 September 2026, INHGA listed the Arieș Basin among those with flows below 30% of long-term monthly averages.
View the sourceSources and context
The 2019 study estimates non-revenue water at approximately 30% of the volume supplied to water systems worldwide, or around 126 billion m³ per year. This global reference estimate draws on available data and estimates for countries with insufficient information.
View the sourceSources and context
The table on page 28 reports non-revenue water (NRW) of 44% nationally, 50% for major regional operators and 27% for large municipal operators. The report explains the distinction between physical leakage and apparent losses, such as metering errors.
View the sourceSources and context
FAO estimates global deforestation at an average of 10.9 million hectares per year in 2015–2025. Net forest area loss, after accounting for forest expansion, is a different indicator: 4.12 million hectares per year over the same period.
View the sourceSources and context
The Council of the European Union explains the role of healthy water for every living organism and for the functioning and preservation of the natural environment.
View the sourceSources and context
The United Nations World Water Development Report 2024 explains how a secure and equitable water future supports prosperity and peace. The quotation on this page is drawn from the English-language report.
View the source
Together, for people and nature
