Tower and Town, November 2026 (view the full edition)Our River, Our Story: Waters Of Change In MarlboroughOver the past year, the people of Marlborough have discovered something powerful: when it comes to the River Kennet, nobody is powerless. Members of our community, and by extension organisations with an interest in our river, have been working alongside Erika Peklanska, a PhD researcher at UWE Bristol. This summer, Transition Marlborough, ARK with River Action have shown two river-themed films at the Parade Cinema, which were wonderfully supported by the community. Erika's project, Waters of Change: Marlborough's Journey Toward Resilience, began with a question: how can communities respond to floods and droughts, and what does resilience really mean? Reaching beyond research alone, our local champions explored it through conversations, creative activities and shared learning. Clearly people care deeply about their river. That was the starting point for everything else. At regular meetings in Marlborough Town Hall, we reviewed different ways of understanding the Kennet. Scientific tools, including river models, helped us explore how the complex Kennet ecosystem works. Models were only part of the picture. They were complemented by people's stories of the past, present, and our hopes and concerns for the future. The models gave us patterns and processes; the stories gave them context, meaning and life. In August, to celebrate, there was a community showcase, supported by UWE's Centre for Environment, Society and Resilience. It was led by our local champions with contributions from Marlborough Town Council, ARK, Wiltshire Council, the Environment Agency, Transition Marlborough, and local farmers, businesses and residents. Visitors explored local experiences of floods and droughts, discovered the science in accessible ways, reflected on their own relationship with the river, and imagined possible futures through storytelling. People did not simply receive information, they shared their own experiences and left inspired to take small actions for the river. For me, this is above all a story of hope, and of what happens when science, creativity and community come together. With the waters of change as inspiration, Transition Marlborough will develop the Kennet BioRegion project (see pp:9f - On Bioregions: the history of an idea) an overarching framework for our river and chalk Downlands, helping us relate to the Kennet as a living system we belong to. As Erika told me, the project "reminds us that communities have agency, that they can shape their own future." Positive change begins with people coming together. On the Kennet, that has already begun. Erika Peklanska, Richard Pitts |