The waters of Georgian Bay and the North Channel are the defining force that unites this extraordinary region. Together they form one of the largest and most ecologically significant freshwater systems on Earth, containing approximately five percent of the world’s fresh water. Stretching across thousands of kilometres of shoreline, islands, channels, wetlands, rivers, and open waters, this vast aquatic landscape has shaped the region’s geology, ecology, cultures, and communities for thousands of years. Seventeen major river systems flow into Georgian Bay and the North Channel, connecting an immense watershed that extends deep into the Canadian Shield and Great Lakes basin. These waters support globally significant biodiversity, sustain Indigenous and local communities, provide drinking water, recreation, transportation, and tourism opportunities, and serve as a vital ecological corridor linking forests, wetlands, coastal habitats, and the broader Great Lakes ecosystem