Thames21

05/06/2026

Happy ! 🌏

Led by UNEP and celebrated since 1973, World Environment Day aims to raise awareness and encourage action to protect nature. This year’s theme is ‘A Global Call for Climate Action’, and our rivers are powerful allies in this mission.

💧Healthy rivers play a key role in building climate resilience and mitigating the impacts of extreme weather events. Unfortunately, our rivers have been suffering major issues such as excessive water abstraction, sewage and plastic pollution, artificial barriers, and invasive species. These make it harder for rivers to cope with a changing climate and more frequent and intense floods and droughts.

🌱🌾By restoring our freshwater ecosystems, implementing nature-based solutions such as wetlands and tree planting, and reconnecting rivers to their floodplains, we can reinstate natural processes and rebuild their capacity to endure warmer temperatures and heavier rainfall.

🔗Learn more about our river restoration projects and how you can get involved on our website.

💙Join us in our mission to transform London and the Thames Basin into a healthier, more climate-resilient region with rivers that everyone can enjoy.

04/06/2026

As Volunteers’ Week draws to a close, we’re celebrating the incredible people who give their time to make a positive difference to our local rivers.

At one of our East London volunteering events, we met Rahma.

She was one of the dedicated volunteers who joined our River Litter Detectives session on the Thames foreshore. In the video, she reflects on the types of litter we uncovered and how taking part helped her contribute to a healthier local environment. ⭐

🚮 Tackling plastic pollution requires collective action. No single solution can address a challenge of this scale.

Every stakeholder has a role to play:
Plastic manufacturers must continue to innovate and reduce waste across their operations. Policymakers need to create systems that enable long-term, sustainable change. And consumers can make a real impact through informed, mindful choices.

Only through coordinated action across all levels can we drive meaningful progress.

If you’re passionate about protecting your local river and want to get involved in your community, please take a look at our bio to find out more about joining one of our upcoming volunteering sessions: https://www.thames21.org.uk/events/

04/06/2026

Did you know you can help choose the next faces of the UK banknotes?

💷The Bank of England has shortlisted 18 species of mammals, birds, amphibians, insects, and fish to feature across the four denominations.

💧We might be a little biased, but we’re throwing all our support behind the river-dwelling ones on the list!

👉 Swipe to meet the freshwater contenders and see who gets our vote.

🗳️ The consultation is officially open until July 3rd. Voting is quick, easy, and can be done online or by post. You can cast your vote here: https://ow.ly/v17c50Z7yPg

03/06/2026

Looks really interesting. ⬇️

We've got some fantastic events coming up this June, join a wildflower printing workshop, a tree or butterfly walk, or get up bright and early to hear the dawn chorus! Later in the month, join an evening bat walk or celebrate the summer solstice with a unique yoga experience.

Find out more here: https://ow.ly/uB3350Z6Ho5

03/06/2026

Join Stepney City Farm for a special film screening of the 'People’s Emergency Briefing' - an eye-opening film bringing together nine leading UK scientists and experts with the latest evidence and why it matters for things like:
• Extreme weather

Find out more here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/community-climate-screening-peoples-emergency-briefing-tickets-1990164102404?aff=oddtdtcreator&_gl=1*1k8m146*_up*MQ..*_ga*Mjg3MzMwMTkyLjE3Nzk4NzEwOTg.*_ga_TQVES5V6SH*czE3Nzk4NzEwOTYkbzEkZzEkdDE3Nzk4NzIwODEkajYwJGwwJGgw&keep_tld=true

03/06/2026

💯 Throwback time! As it’s Volunteers’ Week, we’re shining a spotlight on the incredible people who help make our work possible.

Earlier this year, James and Lake joined fellow volunteers at our River Litter Detective event as part of the Thames21 River Watch programme. Since 2014, this initiative has brought Londoners together to tackle plastic pollution by recording the litter they find along the river and tracking the most common items.

🥊 This people-powered data helps us identify where pollution is coming from, enabling us to campaign for change and develop practical solutions that protect the Thames for future generations.

🎉 A huge thank you to James and Lake for getting involved, and to all our fantastic volunteers who generously give their time to care for our river. Their dedication makes a real difference, and we couldn’t do it without them.

Part of the local community? Want to make a difference to your local environment and reconnect with nature? Please click the link below to get involved in one of our community volunteering events.
https://www.thames21.org.uk/events/

03/06/2026

Recent figures published in The Times and The Sunday Times have shown that Thames Water caused almost a third of the water sector’s most harmful pollution incidents in 2025.

A Thames21 spokesman said: “The scale of serious pollution incidents linked to Thames Water is deeply concerning. Preventing sewage pollution at source must be a priority, and water companies need to invest far more urgently in the infrastructure required to protect river health.

“Healthy rivers matter for nature, for people and for the resilience of communities across London and the Thames Basin. That is why Thames21 works with local communities and partner organisations to restore rivers, improve habitats and support long-term solutions to the pressures facing our rivers.

“Water companies must be held accountable when performance falls short. Cleaner, healthier rivers will only come through sustained investment, practical action and long-term commitment from companies, regulators, government and environmental organisations.”

Read full Times article here: https://www.thetimes.com/uk/environment/article/thames-water-worst-polluter-second-year-running-3pwcm3ns0

03/06/2026

Calling all West London citizen scientists! Want to make a real, measurable impact on the health of the Thames? 🌊🔍

🗓️Join us on the 8th June at Broomhouse Dock to help us investigate plastic pollution on the foreshore. We’ll be collecting and categorising litter we find into sewage-derived, plastic items, and others.

📊This data is fed into the Tidal Thames Live Litter Map, helping track the scale, variety, and distribution of plastic pollution in the river.

🔗There are only a couple of spots left, hurry to secure yours here: https://ow.ly/UiHz50Z6KCz

See you then! 😉

02/06/2026

Bexley community, celebrate Volunteers' Week with us! 🌊

💧Help the River Cray thrive by coming along to our wade session this Friday, 5th June.

🌸We’ll be removing Himalayan Balsam, a fast-growing invasive species that erodes riverbanks and outcompetes native plants.

Come experience the river from a unique perspective and make a real difference. 😉

🔗 Register here: https://book.plinth.org.uk/e/e7jik49E6Tt8G3kuv7bU