The watershed is the earliest geographical unit of human activity and the tensest area in terms of human–land relations. Focussing solely on individual watershed spaces makes it difficult to comprehensively reflect and address complex human–land issues. For the complex processes of the origin, dissemination, communication and integration of civilisations, a more macroscopic scale is also needed for systematic understanding and analysis. The exchange and mutual learning amongst the Yellow River Basin, Yangtze River Basin and Grand Canal region promote the diversity and innovation of culture, making them the ‘typical containers’ of Chinese civilisation. Based on the uniqueness and correlation of regions such as the Yellow River Basin, Yangtze River Basin and Grand Canal, this study constructs the concept of a ‘Yellow-Canal-Yangtze’ watershed community, combining existing disciplinary advances and summarizing its spatial, temporal and elemental characteristics. This research is conducive to promoting the creative transformation and innovative development of excellent traditional culture, assisting in the protection of watershed cultural heritage systems and the governance of watershed ecosystems, and promoting regional coordinated and interconnected development.
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