Julia Watson. Lo—TEK. Water. A Field Guide for TEKnology

Plunge into the ancestral water wisdom that could reshape all our futures. This spell-binding book reveals how Indigenous innovations—like floating farms, tidal fish traps, and aquifer recharge systems—have sustained civilizations for millennia by working with nature, not against it. Far from relics, these systems offer dynamic, adaptable solutions for the climate crisis of today.Structured to bridge past and future, the author Julia Watson dissolves the divide between technology and ecology, between ancestral wisdom and digital innovation. The TEKnological Renaissance it celebrates redefines water as an intelligent force that can shape resilient cities and landscapes. Aquatic infrastructure is reframed—from extractive and industrial into regenerative and evolving—designed to sustain life for generations. Co-authored with Indigenous knowledge-keepers and with a foreword by Dr. Lyla June Johnson (Diné/Tsétsėhéstȧhese), this captivating read investigates traditional hydrological technologies across diverse ecosystems, from salty coastal reefs to freshwater wetlands. Discover Mexico’s chinampas, China’s dike-ponds, Bangladesh’s floating farms and Micronesia’s tidal traps.Shifting focus from the past to the present and future, it also showcases 22 groundbreaking contemporary TEK projects—including Peru’s reed-insulated housing, Thailand’s terraced rooftop farms, and China’s Sponge Cities—proving TEK continues to drive transformative design. This is both a field guide and a manifesto: a call to architects, planners, and communities to design with water’s elemental intelligence and build future worlds that are rooted in resilience.

Julia Watson is an Australian-born designer, educator, author, TED speaker, and radical thought leader of Greco-Egyptian-English heritage, known for championing climate-resilient design through ancestral technologies. Trained as an architect in First Nations knowledge systems, she spearheads the global Lo—TEK movement. She co-founded the Lo—TEK Institute and the Lo—TEK Office for Intercultural Urbanism, both co-led by Indigenous and non-Indigenous designers and scientists. A lecturer at Harvard and Columbia, Watson has collaborated with NIKE, LEGO, Gensler, and Buro Happold, continually redefining sustainability through ancestral wisdom. Lina Müller is a Swiss-based illustrator and designer whose work blends commercial purpose with expressive artistry. She focuses primarily on editorial illustration and has collaborated with leading publications, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, Bloomberg Businessweek, Die Zeit, Reportagen magazine, and Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin. Piera Wolf is a Swiss-born and Zürich-based graphic designer and art director who specializes in visual identity, print and exhibition design. Her practice is dedicated to creating tailored solutions with soul, expertise and passion for her many clients who hail from (but aren’t limited to) the fields of art, design, fashion, hospitality, and culture at large. Stephanie Specht is a Belgium-based independent graphic designer known for her purposeful, raw, and uncomplicated simplicity. She specializes in visual identities, posters, illustrations, and books, and particularly enjoys the experimental phase of design—the space where she can explore freely and create without limits.