The Kalapuyan word "Whilamut" means "where the river ripples and runs fast." The Willamette and McKenzie rivers flow through the valley between the Coast Mountains and the Cascades.
The South Willamette Valley is a sub-section of the broader Willamette Valley ecosystem, which is in turn part of the larger Cascadian Bioregion. Nestled between the coastal and Cascade mountain ranges, the Willamette River Valley was shaped by the Missoula Floods and tectonic activity, carrying a rich natural and cultural history dating back beyond the presence of diverse First Nations groups 15,000 years ago.
Largely inhabited by Kalapuyan peoples, the Whilamut Valley was a carefully tended landscape of oak savannas, wetland prairies, and fire-managed grasslands prior to colonization. Today, the region centers on Eugene and Springfield, where a vibrant community of farmers, educators, land stewards, and organizers is working to reconnect with these deep patterns of place-based care.
LHC Second Content Session: Communicating Vision & Impact (Multi-capital & Story-based Reporting) In our second content delivery session Regenerate Cascadia co-administrators Clare Attwell and Brandon…
We are excited to officially welcome the South Willamette Valley as our newest Landscape Group in the Cascadia BioRegen Program. Rooted in the valleys of…
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This tab will host interactive bioregional maps created during Phase 2 mapping workshops, including ecological, cultural, and community resource layers.
This tab will host shared documents, toolkits, datasets, and other resources contributed by landscape group members and stewards.
