Coastal Connections will capture many forms of local experience, knowledge and memories of coastal life to indentify changes in the environment, landscape and sense of place. These will be translated into a range of accessible format and activities for dissemination to schools, communities, visitors and between the partners involved. We believe it will be unique in linking memories of the sea and coastline to processes of change. The project is taking place during the autumn of 2022, and our work will become visible to local people and visitors during 2023.
Our current focus is on our bell sites of Morecambe and Harwich. Both have a long, rich and contrasting history coastal life, and both have already and are continuing to experience significant changes. We anticipate stories of changing fishing catches; changed mudflats and estuaries; coastal erosion; cod disappearing, skate and lobster booming; and much more. Custodians of these stories include elderly coastal citizens and seafarers, sailing clubs, harbour employees, school children and their parents and grandparents from the same locality.
We aim to galvanise schools, community groups, individuals, and others to play their part and become the beating heart of the project.
Our ambition is both to extend this project to our other bell sites, and to continue it for as long as possible.
