G
La Garzette
Le journal le plus lu les pieds dans l'eau. Abonnez-vous !
La ga(r)zette
The most popular riverside gazette!
A new winged creature (a paper one) has appeared on the Loire’s banks! No need to panic, this one shouldn't become too invasive. “La ga(r)zette” is a twice-yearly gazette published by Mission Val de Loire to talk about what’s on and share the characteristics of the Loire landscapes.
La ga(r)zette is a gazette which shares with its feathered homonym (the little egret, Egretta garzetta in Latin) a fondness for the river and its landscapes. We have deliberately wanted this publication to appeal to the public at large, in both tone and style.
Each issue explores a specific topic and is laid out in a similar format: the gazette can be folded out like a road map with, on one side, an editorial, an interview, some informative articles, a glossary and resources for further reading. On the other, there is a poster designed by an illustrator, with accompanying key dates and figures.
We mainly focus on the middle Loire region and its landscapes inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. However, we are committed to sharing a community with a shared future upriver and downriver alike, as well as right across its drainage basin. As such, this gazette will also delve into issues relating to the Loire as a whole.
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La ga(r)zette is a free gazette published... at the whims of the winds and currents, but more or less twice a year! If you’d like it to be delivered to you, simply complete the online subscription form.
La ga(r)zette is a paper-based gazette. It has been designed for this format and when opened up completely, it reveals a 95 x 62 cm poster.
That said, the topics addressed in each issue have a bearing on the criteria for the Loire Valley’s inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List. So it also seemed important to us to make a digital version available too. Textual content, photos and resources have been put online on this website.
The first issue of the ga(r)zette forms the core content under the section Discover. Published in July 2023, it was devoted to the ABC of the Loire Valley World Heritage. Its content therefore focuses on the key elements of the Loire landscape: water, soil, architecture, boating, vines and gardens. On the back, the poster helps us to broaden our perceptions, with a picture of the Loire Valley World Heritage perimeter at the scale of the drainage basin, demonstrating the extent of the river’s wider water network (117,000 km², the equivalent of one fifth of mainland France).
This 2nd issue was the first of the special features under the section Explore. It provides a fresh interpretation of the river’s recent history in light of growing awareness of its role and the close links that unite all the living things that the Loire welcomes. From the doctrine to control the river in the 18th century and the campaign for a Living Loire in the late 1980s to the emergence of the concept of a common heritage of humanity and the advent of a Loire people, this new “ga(r)zette” outlined a history and landscape in common, which Étienne Davodeau agreed to illustrate.
The “Loire Sentinelle” association contributed to the gazette’s third issue, inviting you on a journey at the intersection of science, art and literature. Entitled “Loire Sentinelle, remonter aux sources”, this special issue follows the river, from its sources to its estuary, via its islands, along the route taken by the association’s members during the “Grande Descente” outing down the Loire in 2022. Thanks to their insights, you’ll see that the Loire does not have one but multiple sources, and that its initial waters do not necessarily go where you might think; you’ll navigate between its islands and learn that you should never underestimate the invisible; you’ll venture as far as the estuary, where everything blurs together: sediments and pollutants, etymology and mythology... You can find all the content from this “ga(r)zette” under the section “Explore”.
Navigating on the Loire — whether downriver or upriver — requires traditional knowledge that is kept alive by sailing communities to this day. Archaeological excavations continually give us insights into the past. Today, sailors on the Loire are committed to reviving a nautical and ecological continuity for the longest river in France.
Paper version published in March 2024. Digital version coming out at the end of 2025.
Ga(r)zettes in common
In keeping with our values to share and be open-minded, we hope that this newsletter will be a channel for other users too, besides Mission Val de Loire. We are always enthusiastic about the idea of working with other groups, since this gazette can also be yours! For instance, the Loire sentinelle association contributed to issue no. 3, while issue no. 4 features a variety of contributions, including from an archaeologist, ethnologist, landscaper, photographer and anthropologist.
If you’d like to help us write a future issue, please contact us.
Illustration principale : MARMIROLI Bruno / Mission Val de Loire
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