Just a few years ago, water pollution was rarely mentioned in the media and wasn’t described as a public priority. Yet in a short space of time, it has come to dominate the political, public and media agenda. This shift couldn’t be better represented by the ‘March for Clean Water’ last Sunday. 15,000 people peacefully marched on the streets of London, all dressed in blue, with one simple ask for Government and industry – stop poisoning Britain’s rivers.

Like many people who attended UK secondary school in the 2010s, I first learnt about climate change in Geography, when I was taught about its causes and impacts on the natural environment.

With climate and nature rising the political agenda, it wasn’t surprising that this year’s Labour Party Conference agenda was filled with events discussing the key challenges and opportunities for the environment and energy transition. However, competition for political speakers was fierce with attendees having to choose between 3-4 clashing events spread across the Conference map. 

As this autumn’s conference season comes to an end, the Conservatives will hold the final get-together of the three largest parties in Birmingham from 29 September-2 October. For their first conference in opposition for 14 years, the Tories will focus on what direction the party heads in following defeat and which of the four remaining leadership candidates is best equipped to guide them.

Just over two months on from their landslide election victory, the Labour Party will gather in Liverpool for its Annual Conference from Sunday 22 – Wednesday 25 September. 

With much to discuss, and a huge number of events taking place over the conference period, where should you focus your time? This guide offers some suggestions

The Liberal Democrats are gearing up for their annual conference in Brighton from the 14^th-17^th September. It promises to be a pivotal moment for the party following the 2024 general election, where they secured 72 seats—their highest total ever. For the first time since 2015, they are the third-largest party in the House of Commons.  

Labour is over halfway through its first 100 days; the next 50 days include key milestones like Labour Party Conference and the Government’s debut Budget. Below, we examine delivery on energy and environment promises and highlight what’s left to look out for as we enter the sprint period to Christmas break. 

In the run up to the General Election, we published a weekly newsletter bringing our readers a concise summary of the latest environmental insights, milestones and campaign developments.

You can read them all here, and sign up to our mailing list here to receive our monthly newsletter which gives a glimpse into the minds of the Seahorse herd.

The European Parliament’s shift towards more climate-sceptic parties is pretty disheartening for climate campaigners, but after the initial punch to the gut, moments like these can be a good time to take stock of new dynamics.

The Welsh Government has delivered numerous ambitious environmental policies since devolution 25 years ago. However, with Welsh Ministers facing challenges from a centralised Westminster Government and a public backlash on key reforms, does Wales currently represent a leading light or a cautionary tale on the environment?

In recent years there’s been a marked shift in the general tone of campaigning from one of outrage to one of disgust.

From confronting videos that show fish eaten alive by sea-lice in intensive farming conditions, to campaigns in Europe that have seen physical excrement used as ink in letters to politicians looking to end pollution in rivers, we’re seeing a rise in gross out comms.

In her time at Seahorse, Costanza Poggi, Managing Director has seen a fair few coalitions come together to build effective campaigns and win significant policy changes. In our latest insight, she reveals her coalition ‘must haves’ for success.

Seahorse Founder and Chair, Isabella Gornall, has been listed in PR Week’s Power Book 2024 and has also been included in their list of top 10 ‘Environmental Comms Champions’.

2024 is set to be a big year in politics. For those seeking policy change and political influence, the period up to an election can be a challenge. With January being a busy month for environmental policy developments, Account Director Sarah Whitebread gives us a stock take and lessons learned for advocacy over the next few months.

Account Manager Matt Dawson, who works across many of our water/ocean accounts, explores what this means at sea, where the Government is looking to navigate the choppy waters of marine protection, renewable power infrastructure, and the demands of existing sea users.

Even before the historic by-election results, party conference season and ‘cost of net zero’ speech from the Prime Minister, there was a sense that the parties were pivoting to ‘general election’ mode. Momentum on policy design has lost ground to sound bite commitments that will get cut through on the doorstep. However, with reports that an election could arrive as late as winter 2024/2025, there’s a real risk of stalling progress on critical decarbonisation and nature issues. Taking a temperature check on the parties and sense checking how messaging aligns with party direction is key to making the most of the next twelve months.

This weekend marks the final of this year’s party conferences as everyone gears up to assemble in Liverpool for Labour. As we head into the final conference before a general election, all eyes are on Keir Starmer to set out the party’s priorities for the next few months.

With the autumn conference season now well underway, next is the Conservative Party’s turn in Manchester. Taking place on 1-4 October, the agenda is full to the brim with environment-related events. The run-up to the next general election is likely to see wedge issues such as new oil and gas investment and water pollution become increasingly influential. In the wake of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcements last week about the watering-down of certain green policies, conference this year is certain to be an opportunity for heated discussion and debate.

Bournemouth 2023 marks the first in-person Autumn conference for the Liberal Democrats in four years and is also likely to be the last Autumn conference before a Westminster general election. With the environment high up the Lib Dems agenda and wedge issues such as sewage pollution and nature protection becoming defining campaign issues for the party, conference this year will no doubt be a place for lively discussion and insightful analysis of the political landscape.

Of all the lessons I learnt during my time as a journalist, one stands out most: an appreciation of the power communication holds. This inevitably works both ways: good communication is as valuable as bad communication is detrimental.