River restoration projects often raise controversies and generate conflicts involving various stakeholders. In some cases, this can even prevent projects from being implemented. Our hypothesis is that opening a space for discussion very early in the process may allow practitioners to avoid suffering from controversies later on. On the contrary, we think it helpful to use controversies as a starting point for initiating a dialogue around restoration and co constructing projects that are shared and expected by different stakeholders. We elaborated interdisciplinary participative workshops to promote the definition of desired future states of the river Auzon in southern France. We tested several tools: image and video screening, direct experimentation and sensory model building to accompany stakeholders in the elaboration of their scenarios. We also used practical workshops and sensory mediation to balance the relationship between experts and local residents and open space for sharing different types of knowledge. The involvement of researchers from several disciplines contributed to building up a common river culture and care for the river at stake.