‘The Way of the Wey’ is a socially engaged scientific project based upon the River Wey in the UK. This work raises awareness about the river water crisis in the UK as 40% of the rivers in England and Wales have been polluted by sewage. The work shows how important it is these areas are protected by focusing on both the microscopic details and wider landscape of the river tributary. This work has been inspired by the expansion of my local town which led to the idea of how this could impact the local natural areas.