UWL’s Weston Hall was packed out on 30 April 2026 for Ealing Book Festival’s question and answer session with Robert MacFarlane discussing his new book “Is A River Alive?”. The book tells of his experiences travelling abroad to meet three amazing very different rivers and the people who care for them; the Rio Los Cedros in the Ecuador cloud forest, the ghost river Adyar and the Enmore Creek region of Chennai, India, and the Magpie River in Quebec.
In each location, Robert discusses how the rivers are endangered by the development projects of mining corporations, modern industry, and power companies who see the river as nothing more than inanimate matter, and how local people have fought back to protect the rights of the river. If corporations have rights, why not rivers too?
Although the ghost rivers of Chennai are shown to be in poor state, local people work to encourage interest in nature and the protection of habitats, recognising that humans share that same habitat and are supported by it. There are success stories elsewhere. The Magpie river in Quebec was granted legal personhood in 2021 to protect against development and recognise the river’s significant place in the ecology of a region, a natural force and entity of its own. The Ecuadorian Government protected the Los Cedros cloud forest from development and exploitation, recognising the value of the unique biodiversity and ecosystem it supports.
The host for the discussion was Ben Morris, another River Guardian, of Clean Up The River Brent and the Brent River Park. The Brent River is a lost river, since it disappears for much of its length among culverts underground and is subject to pressure from pollution and sewage discharge. Other local rivers have been lost to our remembered awareness, such as the Bollo Brook, the Radbourne and the Crane. Ben’s work has been both to clean up the Brent River and to champion it, working to pick up litter, to restore the river banks, and to try and prevent sewage from finding its way into the water. Ben’s work also seeks to restore the language of rivers into our local conversations, remembering their boundaries and catchments.
The discussion between Robert and Ben ended on a positive note: highlighting the rise of the Nature Rights movement, and the growing interest in campaigns to protect rivers. In the South of England, the River Ouse is now protected under the Rights of the River Ouse Charter by Lewes council, and the River Wye is now the subject of a court case against the industries that have polluted it. Perhaps the river tide is turning?
In Ealing, a number of organisations act to look after our local rivers and watercourses, including CURB, Brent River Park, and Ealing Wildlife Group at Paradise Fields, and LAGER Can. Despite the activity, and the successes, there is still lots of work to be done, and volunteers are always needed. You can view our partners pages to find out more information. Also, London Rivers Week is taking place soon, between May 23rd and May 31st 2026 (over the summer half term for many). You can find out more information here.
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