Catchment Management Workshop | LEEDS | IN-PERSON

Hosted by the CIWEM Tyne and Humber branch

Event description

An immersive, in‑person workshop designed specifically for early‑career professionals who are passionate about rivers, the environment, and the interconnected systems that influence how we manage them.

Rivers are dynamic, complex, and essential. Balancing ecological health, flood risk, infrastructure, community needs, and policy constraints is far from simple.

This interactive workshop will introduce participants to the real-world challenges of river management, while providing a lively space to explore solutions from multiple perspectives, including:

• Technical approaches – hydrology, geomorphology, engineering design
• Policy and governance lenses – regulation, funding, stakeholder engagement, national priorities
• Holistic, systems-based thinking – recognising how environmental, social, and economic factors interconnect

Through hands-on group activities and guided discussions facilitated by professionals, attendees will work in teams to unpack the complexities of managing river systems and experiment with different ways of responding to emerging challenges.

Attendees can expect a hands‑on workshop that’s social and engaging. By the end of the workshop, participants will leave with a broader set of insights, new contacts, and a stronger foundation of their understanding of river management.

Part of the CIWEM Catchment Management series.

Who should attend

• CIWEM members and non-members
• Early career individuals working in or interested in the water sector (river, catchment management but not limited to this)
• Consultancies, working for the Environment Agency and other government bodies, construction, academia

Why you should attend

• Learn about real-world river management challenges through interactive, engaging activities
• Explore different ways of thinking—from technical approaches to policy and governance perspectives—to understand how complex river systems are managed
• Build confidence and early-career skills in an environment designed specifically for those in their first few years in the sector
• Connect with peers from a range of companies and organisations, creating valuable networking opportunities across consultancy, government, academia, NGOs, and more

Are you a CIWEM member? Want to find out more?

Becoming a CIWEM member gives you a globally-recognised demonstration of your professionalism and technical abilities. Whether you have just started your career or are extensively experienced, we will have a membership grade that's right for you. Click below to find out more.

About the speakers

Irantzu Lexartza-Artza | Senior Scientist (Geomorphology) | Arup

Irantzu Lexartza-Artza is a Fluvial Geomorphologist and general catchment systems specialist working at Arup based in Leeds. She has international expertise relating to catchment processes, integrated catchment management and environmental water regulation. Irantzu has extensive experience of multidisciplinary work for the improvement of fluvial environments and has an interest on the relation between land-use change and catchment pressures.

Martin Smith | Senior Scientist (specialising in Green Book economic appraisal) | Arup

Martin Smith is a senior economist working in the Flood Risk team at Arup, based in Leeds. He has over nine years of professional experience in consultancy and has worked on fluvial, surface water, and foul drainage projects. Martin currently works on a range of projects, applying geographical principles and collaborating with other disciplines in areas such as: flood risk management, FCERM economic appraisals, environmental economics, carbon appraisal, climate resilience, reservoir consequence assessments, and geospatial analysis.

Booking and joining information

This event is open to members and non-members of CIWEM.

Please note there is limited capacity at this event. Bookings must be made through 'My CIWEM' using the above booking link. Non-members who have not registered for the MyCIWEM system can create an account on the booking page in order to reserve their place.

If you have any questions about your booking or would like to cancel your attendance, please contact branches@ciwem.org.

Please note that registrations close at 09:00, four working days before the event is to take place. If you have not registered by then, unfortunately we cannot add you to the event.

If you have any queries about this talk, please contact Clover Misra at Clover.misra@arup.com.

About the venue and getting there

The event will take place at the Arup offices at 12 Wellington Place, Leeds, LS1 4AP. The venue is within easy walk of both Leeds railway station and buses run near by the offices.

Travelling to the venue

As part of CIWEM’s commitment to tackling the climate and ecological emergency we would encourage delegates to use the most environmentally sustainable means of transport possible.

By train

Leeds railway station is the nearest train station to the venue and is located in New Station Street, Leeds LS1 4DY. It is within nine-minutes’ walk of the Arup offices and three-minutes’ cycle ride for those travelling from outside the city.

By bus | coach | tram

Leeds bus and coach station is located in New York Street, Leeds LS2 7HU and is twenty three-minutes’ walk and seven-minutes’ cycle from the venue.

No. 4, 4F and 16 buses are nineteen minutes from the venue.

By foot | cycle

The Arup offices are nine-minutes’ and twenty three-minutes’ walk from Leeds railway station and bus station respectively and three-minutes’ and seven-minutes’ cycle from the venue.

By car

If you are coming by car or taxi, please consider sharing the journey with others to reduce your environmental footprint. Please note that there is no car parking available on site.