Keynote address to the UK Water Partnership Summit – 23 March 2025
Natasha Wiseman, Founder & CEO of WiseOnWater and Make Water Famous
Good afternoon, everyone.
It’s an absolute pleasure to be here with all of you—business leaders, engineers, scientists, policymakers, regulators, communicators and water stewards from across the country. We’ve come together not just to talk about river water quality, but to redefine what success truly looks like—for our sector, for water resources and the environment, for our communities, and for future generations.
Of course you were expecting to hear from the Water Minister today – and may be relieved to hear that I am not her.
Water is – at last – and always should be a national priority. The Minister really should be beating a path to be here, not just to speak, but to listen to the astonishing array of expertise in the room. I very much hope that the outputs of today – the White Paper that this event is helping to shape – when it arrives on her desk, is taken to heart not only by the Minister, but her whole team.
We are here to define what “good river water quality” looks like. Not as a technical metric buried in policy documents, but as a lived reality: where our rivers are clean, rich with wildlife and plant life, and accessible; where communities feel proud and connected to their waterways; and where nature and infrastructure, policy and people, work in harmony.
The public, media and political attention on river water quality has never been higher – well perhaps not since the days of Joseph Bazalgette. Quite rightly, people are asking tough questions.
The condition of our rivers is now a barometer not only for environmental health, but for public trust. Water company operations, agricultural runoff, and urban drainage —once happening largely out of sight and out of mind —are now squarely in the spotlight.
At times, the scale of the challenge we face feels impossible – it encompasses the urgent demands brought by climate change and a growing population, of water scarcity, environmental protection and restoration, flood management and carbon reduction. The much-needed doubling of investment over the next five years – and hopefully beyond – has to be welcomed. But it requires the recruitment of thousands of skilled professionals in a competitive job market; the adoption of innovative technologies, models and approaches in a traditionally – and necessarily – conservative sector. And, of course, the buy-in of the public, at a time when household budgets are stretched to extremes.
It might feel impossible at times; and historically it would have been impossible. That is the legacy of decades of paddling in a different direction – where customer bills were prioritised over viable infrastructure, liveable neighbourhoods and a thriving natural world.
Leaders and decision-makers presumed to know what their citizens wanted, without getting up close and asking them what really mattered. And it may be painful to hear, but in some instances, financial mismanagement compounded environmental failings.
Awful as it was for many, the pandemic was a pivotal time for some, as people had time to think, reconnect, with themselves, their families and their surroundings. As their worlds shrank geographically, the lens through which they saw their own neighbourhoods magnified – and they didn’t always like what they saw.
And as custodians of those watersheds, those rivers and uplands, of the infrastructure serving those towns and cities, water companies can play a big part in rectifying that disappointment – and the kickback that ensued, and in many instances are already on that path.
Those same people – the ones who care – and are prepared to act – are the key to unlocking this challenge.
For a long time I would hear the water community express their heartfelt wish that customers – the public – could understand the scale and the nuances of our water challenges. Now I hear a different complaint – that the public care ‘too much’ – and also – that their priorities are out of whack with what needs to happen.
We have to take ownership of all of these frustrations. As custodians not only of the resources and assets, but also of the knowledge and expertise, this sector has the job of managing water – yes, – but it also has to recognise the responsibility it has for explaining what that management looks like – especially when it’s done well.
Humans have always reinvented themselves, their circumstances and the environments and landscapes they find themselves living in. On a more sparsely populated planet, we could simply shift camp and set up elsewhere for more favourable conditions. In our times, we are running out of places to move too, so we have to make a much better of job of the places where we – and our infrastructure – are.
As water professionals, as citizens, as actors in our communities, let us all take a minute to think – what would work best for our rivers? And for people? For health and well-being? And for the natural world?
What do you want everyone to know? What do you want everyone to do? How are you going to communicate that to them – even those who are hardest to reach?
Thank you for taking that moment. Those questions are possibly the hardest to answer – and today I want to breathe new life into the word ‘collaboration’ by combining it with communication – the two Cs if you like.
Excellence in water management and project delivery is no longer only about best-in-class design and engineering; logistics and efficiencies; it is also about offsetting scrutiny from the public, the press and politicians.
That external attention is now a huge risk that plans and strategies need to embed. Mitigating that risk is achieved not by putting up barriers and shutting down dialogue, but through transparency and openness.
Such an approach requires bravery – yes. And I think Thames Water showed the way in the recent BBC documentary on their challenges. But it also requires involving and resourcing your communications professionals at the outset of any initiative – to identify potential flashpoints and advance plan a response, of course, but most importantly, to be on the front-foot in terms of education and engagement, so that the public get behind the initiatives because they endorse them and the value they bring.
At that point, you not only offset risk, but open the door to amazing opportunities not only to educate and inform, but to change behaviour and enrich your initiatives; ensuring their long-term viability and sustainability.
Connecting deeply with communities could also reverse the crisis in recruitment and skills – bringing in committed people looking for employment with purpose – as both professionals and volunteers. A transformative moment indeed.
The specialist expertise of communications professionals may have a core role in this transition, but there are many, many tactics that everyone can adopt to help bridge that gap and boost public understanding and engagement and I’m going to highlight some of them here.
It starts with simplifying our language. When I talk to my friends and family, technical terms like ‘nutrient loading’ don’t resonate. But explaining the issue as “too much fertiliser polluting our rivers” immediately sparks understanding and concern.
Thinking more broadly, we can all leverage visual tools and social media to share clear, engaging updates and highlight successes, connecting with a wide range of people, especially younger generations on platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
And it is imperative we also engage with local media to broaden our reach and, importantly, share stories of positive change. By clearly communicating the issues and the impact of our efforts, we can inspire hope and collective action.
Future water management must be multi-dimensional—where science, engineering and technology work in symbiosis with the natural world and natural processes – and are rooted in close community engagement and participation.
Without public trust, no amount of investment or innovation will be enough. If we want rivers that are cherished and cared for, we need to rebuild the relationship between people, water, the environment and the water sector —a relationship that was once defined by indifference, neglect, mismanagement and pollution.
Other ways to ford that gap are:
- Making data accessible – I’m a big fan of interfaces where people can check river and bathing water quality, pollution events, or progress toward water conservation goals
- Partnering with trusted local voices – working with schools, community groups, anglers, and environmental NGOs
Something that I think is often missed is the need to train and empower your own people to be trusted voices, especially at a time when, tragically, it can be difficult even to say publicly that you work in water. People trust their friends and neighbours more than institutions — how can your team be rewarded for acting as local advocates?
We are not on our own, but we need to reach out to communities with intent to bring them onboard. To give them back the power to make a difference around the things that matter to all of us – that unite us.
As a sector, we are not alone in taking on these problems – but we are in a unique position to bring people and stakeholders together – to build cooperation and work with each other at scale. That is our future. All our futures.
Clever policies and the white paper that we are here to steer will help, but we need to embed the vision for a better life. A message of hope.
In 25 years, we want to see rivers that are grown-up – to misapply a phrase from AA Milne – ecologically vibrant. Where native species flourish, and natural processes are restored. Rivers that are safe to swim in, fish from, or simply sit beside. Waters that carry not just environmental value, but rise to the emotional and cultural connection held by the communities they run through, over centuries and millennia.
We want a future where all stakeholders – and especially water companies, farmers and planners – are working in concert, not in silos—where collaborative catchment management is the norm, not the exception.
We want towns and cities designed around water — with blue-green corridors, where cloud bursts are not a risk, but a resource. We want tree-lined streets and daylighted streams to cool down our summers. We want rain gardens and wetlands to filter runoff and hold back the flow.
And above all, we want people to feel that rivers belong to them—that they are shared spaces we all have a stake in. This is the future we must co-create. And it starts by setting ambitious, tangible, and inclusive goals—today.
Now, vision alone is not enough. This summit, and the White Paper it will feed into, must be about delivery. That means acting with intent – transforming individual wishes into shared strategies—and shared strategies into lasting impact.
Collaboration and communication are no longer optional. We must build bridges across sectors and silos. Government and regulators. Utilities and agriculture. NGOs and community groups. Academics, businesses and innovators.
Every voice matters—especially those too often left out. Local voices. Youth voices. The people who know their rivers not from policy reports, but from memory, from love, from loss.
We also need to break down the historic power imbalances that have made decision-making feel top-down and disconnected. Open dialogue must be more than a summit talking point—it must become our daily practice.
Rebuilding trust will take humility, transparency, and consistency. That means honestly acknowledging past failures, celebrating collective successes, and staying accountable for the long journey ahead.
When communities are empowered, they not only become custodians, but can influence policy and drive transformation. River cleanups, citizen science projects, school-led water monitoring, and local stewardship groups can turn degraded streams into thriving ecosystems.
A couple of examples of this positive news, that has been featured on our Make Water Famous platform, include:
- The Great UK WaterBlitz run by Earthwatch Europe, which takes place next week – and according to their website – is massively oversubscribed
- And the River Ouse in Sussex becoming the first in England to have rights legally recognised by the local authority
Let’s scale that. Let’s formalise it. Let’s fund it—not as a nice-to-have, but as a core part of our national water strategy. We must design policies and projects that reward not just pollution reduction, but public value creation—beauty, biodiversity, climate resilience, and mental well-being. These are not externalities. These are essential outcomes.
We have an opportunity—perhaps a once-in-a-generation opportunity—to shape a national roadmap that is bold, credible, and deliverable. This roadmap must:
- Define clear, measurable outcomes for river water quality and ecosystem health
- Identify funding mechanisms that blend public investment, private capital, and community contribution
- Establish governance frameworks that are transparent, inclusive, and responsive.
- Embed nature- and community-based approaches as equal pillars of our water strategy
- Prioritise education and engagement, ensuring people know how to help and why it matters
- And above all, it must offer a vision that inspires action, not just compliance.
I want to close by bringing us back to a simple truth:
Rivers are life. They are our history, our present, and—if we do our work well—our future. They connect hills to oceans, past to future, people to place. They carry not just water, but culture, memory, and hope.
What we decide here—and how we act on it—will shape the rivers our grandchildren and their grandchildren inherit.
Let this be the summit where we dared to reimagine, recommit, and rebuild. Not as separate actors, but as one water movement—united by purpose, sustained by collaboration, and driven by the shared belief:
That clean, thriving rivers are not only possible—they are non-negotiable. Let that be our legacy.
I’m going to leave the final word to Winne the Pooh’s friend Eeyore, who once said,
Thank you.
*This is an extended version of the spoken address
