What We Do


Citizen science: this project will train local people to assess water pollution and biodiversity in the Upper River Medway.

Investigate motivation, beliefs, and behaviours of participants and key stakeholders to determine how connection to place and care for nature lead to a more sustainable future.

Public science: our results will be shared and easy to understand on our interactive open-source database hub and map to disseminate our findings and pool scattered data.

What is the problem?

UK RATES

European water quality rankings indicate that the UK’s rivers are among the worst.

POLLUTION

All rivers in England show signs of chemical pollution.

SEWAGE

Sewage discharge is a major driver of biodiversity loss in rivers in England.

DESTRUCTION

Nutrient-rich rivers are causing ocean eutrophication, destroying fishing and tourism industries.

HUman health

Poor water quality is harmful to human health and impacts negatively on biodiversity and ecological functioning.

We need you!

Make a difference by helping us monitor the health of the river and its biodiversity!

You don’t need to be a scientist or a river expert – anyone can be part of Ripple Effect. We’ll train you and our team will support you throughout the project.

We will be working in three stretches of the Upper River Medway.