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All About
SAVE THE BEAVERS
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Save the Beavers is an independent, research-driven advocacy initiative founded by Nova Robbins-Waldstein. My research blends hydrologic science, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, and on-the-ground fieldwork to show that beavers are kin, not nuisances, who also act as living engineers who store water, cool wildfires, and revive biodiversity. Through data-rich storytelling, open-access toolkits, and policy partnerships, we help land managers and communities adopt Beaver-Human Coexistence (BHC) and Beaver-Based Management (BBM) practices that enable rivers, and the people who rely on them, to thrive together. 🦫
To restore right relations & foster coexistence between beavers & humans, lifting them from ‘nuisance’ to respected kin and climate-resilience engineers.
Advance protective, coexistence-based beaver management through integrative science, TEK collaboration, and policy action.
Complex, interconnected riverscapes where beavers, people, and more-than-human communities thrive in climate-resilient ecosystem functioning.
PURPOSE
Save the Beavers is an independent, research-driven initiative that re-imagines the North American beaver (Castor canadensis) as a sovereign ecosystem partner. By centering Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and cutting-edge hydrologic science, we challenge the extractive mindset that once turned beavers into pelts—and today risks turning them into mere ‘natural tools.’ Our purpose is to rebuild ethical reciprocity, so policy, culture, and watersheds can heal together.
MISSION
We (1) generate and translate peer-reviewed research on Beaver-Based Management (BBM) and Low-Tech Process-Based Restoration (LTPBR); (2) co-create knowledge with Indigenous nations and local land stewards; (3) curate open-source BHC toolkits—from flow-device schematics to stakeholder survey guides; and (4) campaign for evidence-driven reforms that embed ‘relational accountability’—respect, reciprocity, responsibility—into every beaver policy in Colorado and beyond
VISION
I envision a continental lattice of beaver-restored wetlands—cooling wildfires, buffering floods, re-seeding biodiversity, and honouring place-based cultural memory. In this future, Beaver–Human Co-existence ladders are standard practice, BBM replaces costly grey infrastructure, and communities celebrate beavers as living teachers of water stewardship
WHO IS BEHIND SAVETHEBEAVERS?
Hi, I'm Nova!
Since 2021, I have been at the forefront of beaver research in Colorado, from studying the hydrogeomorphological effects of beaverponds within acid-mine drainage systems to completing the state’s first audit of beaver policy and management (Honors Thesis: “The Ecological Importance of Castor canadensis: Changing the Legal Narrative in Colorado”). That work called for the re-framing of beavers from “nuisance” to “keystone” and outlined a science-based, non-lethal coexistence strategy. Now, as an M.S. student at CU Boulder under the guidance of Dr. Joanna Lambert, I’m partnering with state agencies and NGOs to put that strategy into practice, bringing beavers back home and allowing them to help heal our rivers.
