Connecting Oceans, Place, and Wellbeing: Community Led Marine Heritage and Human Health at the Dove Marine Laboratory

Marine stations play a vital role not only in advancing ocean science, but in supporting human health, wellbeing, and resilience through deep connections between people and place. This presentation explores how the Dove Marine Laboratory (DML) in Cullercoats, UK, is using marine heritage and artistic storytelling to strengthen community relationships with the coast and promote healthier, more sustainable relationships with the marine environment.Through the project Realising the Marine Heritage of the Dove Marine Laboratory: Engaging and Educating Communities on Sustainable and Healthy Seas, DML is positioning itself as a place‑based platform where cultural heritage, environmental change, and human experience intersect. The initiative recognises that coastal environments influence physical and mental health, identity, and community resilience, and that inclusive engagement with these places is essential as oceans change.A central element of the project is a community listening campaign that invites people to reflect on what the coast and marine heritage mean to their wellbeing. Working with local artists, participants are supported to express personal narratives - including memories of coastal working lives, encounters with marine biodiversity, and observations of environmental change - through creative and accessible formats. These stories will form the basis of a community‑curated heritage museum, developed using co‑created ethical storytelling frameworks that prioritise care, consent, and inclusion.Alongside this creative work, we identify barriers and enablers to engagement with marine stations, and explore how place‑based learning can support ocean literacy, wellbeing, and a shared sense of stewardship. We also introduce a developing global marine heritage exchange, connecting schools and communities across coastal and inland settings.We share lessons learned to date, and reflect on how marine stations can act as trusted coastal observatories where heritage, health, and environmental research come together to support resilient ocean‑connected communities.