SAVE THE DATE: 8TH – 16TH JUNE. 

Greener Henley have organised a packed week of events for Henley’s Great Big Green Week 2024.

SATURDAY 8TH

Henley’s Great Big Green Week kicks off on Saturday 8th June. Join us for a day of discovery of Nature on our doorstep – bring a family picnic along to Mill Meadows for our Down to Nature Day! 

Down to Nature Day 10am – 2pm

We’ll have events programmed throughout the day for all ages, and you can take part in our family-friendly Guided Wildflower Walk, Tree Trail, Butterfly & Moth Safari, Bug Hunt, Pond Dipping and more. Greener Henley will have a stall with plenty of info, including about our Nature Squared campaign, plus there will be conservation stalls, including River Action & Chiltern Chalk Streams, plus bat, toad, moth & butterfly experts on hand to chat. There will also be a plant swap for the green fingered.

Popping through the hedge to the River & Rowing Museum is a MUST – not only to see the work of our local students in our Schools’ Environmental Science Challenge Exhibition, the theme of which is Pollution, but also to immerse yourself in the accompanying exhibition, The Beautiful Blue. This expansive riverside arts and ecology project starts in Hambledon, winds its way along the Thames, and culminates in an exhibition and workshops at the RRM. The project brings together the work of 30+ artists whose creative works collectively weave a story of water and our relationship with it.

Gardening Drawing Club 2 – 4pm 

Let your creativity and love of nature entwine at this family friendly art & gardening session hosted by Henley Library. The Gardening Drawing Club has been developed by Johanna Tagada Hoffbeck, an artist whose gardening life nurtures her creative practice and whose life as an artist informs her horticulture journey. She seeks to share the joy and benefits of integrating both activities into one another at this workshop and will take you through the basics of growing organic vegetables and herbs, before you move on to paint and draw impressions from these encounters. No art or gardening experience is necessary – this event is suitable for beginners and the most experienced alike. All organic seeds, veganic soil, pots, art supplies and plant-based painting materials will be provided!

MONDAY 10TH

In Our Hands: Our Climate Future 7 – 9pm

Come along to what promises to be a great evening talk by Professor Chris Merchant, a prominent Climate Scientist from the University of Reading. Get some expert feedback on your queries at the Q&A session afterwards. This will take place in the Town Hall Council Chambers.

THURSDAY 13TH

Navigating Business Sustainability 5.30 – 7.30pm

Join Greener Henley’s Business group event and find out how your business can be sustainable AND thrive.

ALL WEEK

Wander through the wonderful River & Rowing Museum to see the Exhibition of our Schools’ Environmental Science Challenge, the theme of which is Pollution. Come along and see the work of our local students on this important topic, sitting alongside The Beautiful Blue exhibition which showcases creative work from a diverse group of artists, dedicated to themes of ecology and sociology. Its exploration of water and our human relationship with it invites a shift in the role of the viewer from passive spectator to active thinker, doer and art-maker.

Coming to a book club near you soon: The Big Green Read will be on all week too. More on this soon…

Things in the pipeline..

We will have one of our very popular Green Screen events at the Regal Cinema during the week. Poetry competition & readings will be back again this year, as will Badgemore School’s open garden event, and Lynne Lambourne will be hosting her popular Paddleboard River Clean!