ARISE Engagement

Working with communities to explore what makes coastal places resilient.

We are holding discussions and creative exercises led by local knowledge and agency on the topic of coastal community resilience as part of a research study led by academics at the University of East Anglia.

A series of informal gatherings invite local residents in each location to come together, share experiences and discuss the challenges and opportunities facing their communities. Through conversation, creativity and collective thinking, participants will share their perspectives to explore how coastal places can respond to environmental and social change together.

Each location is working with the commissioned artist who will attend the events, listen to local stories and perspectives, and develop a new artwork inspired by the ideas, aspirations and concerns raised by the community. Alongside the place-based commissions, Kerrie O'Learie is working across all four locations to connect themes and insights emerging from the wider programme.

The commissioned artists working in each location are: David Blandy in Eastchurch (Kent), Mattie O'Callaghan in St Osyth (Essex), Jane Scobie in Heacham (Norfolk) and Cliff Hammett in Bawdsey (Suffolk). Each location has been documented by a commissioned artist filmmaker: Charlotte Ginsborg, Helen Burt and Mark Pozlep.

The final artworks will be announced in 2027.

About the ARISE Project

This research is led by a team of researchers from the University of East Anglia (UEA) in partnership with Estuary Festival and is part of the wider ARISE (Advancing Resilience and Innovation for a Sustainable Environment) programme. ARISE involves several research teams led by the University of Essex and focusing on community resilience in coastal areas. The aim of ARISE is to create conceptual and methodological tools and recommendations to build sustainable resilience policy for UK coastal communities.