Author to encourage local climate action at Henley Literary Festival

How can a town like Henley accelerate climate action? That question will take center stage at the Henley Literary Festival when a leading communications strategist in sustainability joins forces with a prominent environmental campaigner to explore the power of community-led change.

On October 4, communications expert Sangeeta Waldron will be in conversation with environmentalist Tony Juniper as part of Greener Henley’s Big Green Conversation series—a strand of the festival designed to spark practical, local responses to the ecological crisis. The session will be chaired by Mike Barry, formerly the head of sustainability at Marks & Spencer and now chair of trustees at Greener Henley, bringing deep experience in both corporate transition and grassroots action.

Waldron is expected to argue that the most effective climate solutions are increasingly being designed and delivered at the neighborhood level. Rather than waiting for national directives, she says, communities are stepping up—organizing clean-ups, rewilding pockets of land, supporting nature-friendly businesses, and challenging pollution where they live. This local momentum, she believes, is where hope is turning into measurable change.

That lens makes Henley an apt setting. Residents and local groups have been mobilizing around river health, biodiversity recovery, and the broader question of how a town can thrive while living within ecological limits. The River Thames, threading through daily life in Henley, offers a vivid reminder that environmental decisions—good or bad—flow through a place’s culture, economy, and wellbeing. The discussion will ask how a shared sense of place can be a catalyst for collective action rather than a backdrop to it.

Waldron’s recent book, “What Will Your Legacy Be?”, gathers perspectives from a wide range of voices—from NASA researchers to indigenous leaders—on what it means to leave a positive imprint in a time of cascading environmental change. Those insights are likely to inform the conversation in Henley: legacy not as a distant idea, but as the sum of everyday choices communities make about water, energy, food, nature, and care for one another.

Juniper, a long-standing voice for nature’s recovery, brings a complementary perspective: the scale and urgency of the crisis demand action across policy, business, and civil society, but durable progress often starts with local proof of what is possible. Expect the session to examine how town-level initiatives can influence bigger systems—by setting examples, shifting norms, and creating the public mandate for stronger protections and investments.

Barry’s role as chair will help bridge the “street-to-strategy” conversation: how a neighborhood’s energy can connect with boardroom decisions, municipal planning, and national frameworks. Under his guidance, the panel will explore what practical steps residents can take in the coming months, including:

• Protecting river ecosystems through monitoring, reporting, and community science
• Boosting urban biodiversity with pollinator corridors, native planting, and habitat restoration
• Reducing emissions via home energy efficiency, shared transport options, and circular economy projects
• Supporting local food systems that cut waste and nurture soil health
• Building coalitions across schools, businesses, faith groups, and sports clubs to drive coordinated action

While national policy remains crucial, the panel will emphasize that local action creates momentum, resilience, and a sense of agency—qualities that help communities adapt to climate impacts already unfolding. Henley’s efforts to reimagine its relationship with water, land, and wildlife stand as a case study in how place-based solutions can scale.

The conversation is part inspiration, part blueprint, and aims to leave attendees with concrete ideas to launch or accelerate in Henley and beyond. The hope is that participants walk away with tools to collaborate across sectors and a renewed commitment to protecting the natural assets that define the town.

The event takes place at 4pm on October 4 at the Gower Cottage Brownies Stage, Henley Town Hall, as part of the Henley Literary Festival’s Big Green Conversation series.