Living Mekong, The

by Mekong Press

Photography by Joe Garrison, text by Delia Paul

Color photographs throughout. Hardcover, paper on board, jacket

The Living Mekong shows how the Mekong's seasonal rise and fall shapes daily life for the people who live on and around it, in matters from transport to festivals to fish trap design. By world standards, the Mekong fishery is immense in scale, producing around 2.5 million tons of wild fish a year, or roughly two per cent of the entire world catch. In numbers of fish species, the Mekong is second only to the Amazon.

This unique collection of photographs takes us beyond the familiar postcard views of the Mekong to sites rarely seen by the public—from secluded natural pools known only to local fishers, to factory floors that package the fillets appearing on restaurant platters all over the world. Aerial images, captured from helicopters, show habitats that are critical to the survival of many species.

This book will appeal to everyone with a heart for this mighty river, an eye for a fast-changing way of life and a mind for the choices the Mekong's people face today.

About the Contributors

Joe Garrison is a photographer and scientist who specializes in documenting the people of Southeast Asia and their interactions with the natural environment. An environmental toxicologist by training, Joe previously worked as a research consultant with the Mekong River Commission's fisheries programme, and now operates his business, Garrison Photographic, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Delia Paul is a researcher and writer on environment and development issues who has lived in the Mekong region for many years, working with leading agencies for environmental management and poverty reduction.