RIVERE Ecological Center

RIVERE will provide a collaborative, high-tech, immersive space that brings together researchers, educators, innovators, and communities to advance watershed health and ecological understanding.

About RIVERE Ecological Center

RIVERE is a 501(c)(3) not for profit corporation that is working to build the RIVERE Ecological Center, a purpose-built hub along the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Designed as shared space, the Center will bring together researchers, environmental educators, nonprofits, ecopreneurs, public agencies, Tribal partners, and community members who are working to advance watershed health and river stewardship. Rather than operating programs itself, RIVERE will provide the space, digital tools, and connective tissue that allow existing organizations to collaborate more deeply, reach more people, and create lasting economic, environmental, and educational impact.

The Rappahannock SmartRiver Initiative will serve as a focal point for collaboration among researchers and ecopreneurs at the RIVERE Ecological Center. This pioneering initiative aims to deploy a smart wireless sensor network in tributaries throughout the length of the Rappahannock to enable proactive monitoring, mitigation, and planning measures as projected population growth and development upstream place increased pressure on the river.

RIVERE collaborates and engages with over 120 regional and national stakeholders, to include Virginia Tech, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Friends of the Rappahannock, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Patawomeck Indian Tribe of Virginia, the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation, the University of Mary Washington, the City of Fredericksburg, and Stafford County. RIVERE is preparing to launch a capital campaign to construct a 30,000 square foot state-of-the-art ecological center featuring wet/dry laboratories, immersive virtual/augmented reality exhibit space, conference facilities, and a coworking membership model.