This diagram shows how trees move water from the soil to the air, creating what one NPR source describes as "massive, invisible flying rivers." Image Credit: Philadelphia Water

Evapotranspiration.

It’s a mouthful alright. But it’s also a word we often use when trying to explain how Green City, Clean Waters and green stormwater infrastructure helps the city manage excess water we get from storms.

It’s a pretty abstract concept, but Antonio Nobre, one of Brazil’s leading climate scientists, described the impact of evapotranspiration in a very cool way while talking to NPR’s Lourdes Garcia-Navarro in early November: