At the end of October we were delighted to part of the Love Our Ouse symposium in Lewes, East Sussex on the practical implementation of the River Ouse Charter. The gathering brought together 58 participants from 33 organisations including biodiversity organisations, local authorities, lawyers, recreational river users and water companies, to identify and discuss how the charter can be enacted and the river represented in decisions that affect it as a living ecosystem.

The rights of nature approach to environmental protection and nature recovery is rapidly gaining recognition in the UK, with charters and declarations now covering 12 rivers. Following the pioneering work being done on the guardianship of the River Ouse, these locally led, non statutory frameworks express shared duties among people, councils and businesses. While not requiring full legal personhood, this approach establishes moral and policy baselines and provides a governance anchor for planning, enforcement and community action.

The symposium discussions identified multiple triggers for representation of the river, and looked at local and global examples for how the river can have a place at the decision making tables, including through guardianship, citizen assemblies and species councils. It was interesting to also consider how AI can be used to draw together data on impacts of decisions on the river and the different species within the riveraine system.

The Southwood Foundation has been part of the River Ouse Charter steering group from the outset and we look forward to supporting the work further to bring the rights of the River Ouse to life.