- Location: Ireland
- Institution: Maynooth University
- Status: Active
- Type: Research
- Theme: Sustainable Communities & Livelihoods
- Timeframe: 2024 - 2029
Share on social
Irish and British coasts are eroding at an increasing pace, driven by rising sea levels and more intense storms linked to climate change. With further sea-level rise expected, more coastline will be lost in the coming years, along with places and homes that are deeply valued by local communities.
Plans to adapt to these changes have so far focused largely on physical and technical responses. However, there is a significant gap in our understanding of what coastal change means for people’s health and wellbeing. In particular, little is known about how the loss of familiar places affects people’s sense of belonging, identity, and connection to their communities.
This project seeks to address that gap by developing a clearer understanding of the health and wellbeing consequences of place loss, and by helping to inform responses to coastal change that are not only effective, but also socially just and sensitive to the needs of affected communities.
Project Goals
-
Work directly with local communities to track and map how coastlines are changing over time, developing simple monitoring methods that communities themselves can use
-
Understand and measure the impact that losing familiar places has on people’s health and wellbeing, including the effects of the physical structures built to protect coastlines
-
Explore how ongoing coastal loss affects people’s ability to adapt and their hopes and outlook for the future
-
Identify the ways in which individuals and communities cope with place loss and protect their health and wellbeing, with the aim of developing responses that could be applied in other affected areas
Partner
Institutions
