ResponSEAble

For the last four years, the ResponSEAble project has been looking at ways to help people understand their connection to the sea. Whether they live on the coast or inland, the project’s goal has been to figure out how to encourage Europeans to take a more interest in their oceans, improve their understanding and to treat them with greater respect.

ResponSEAble is funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 program and has 15 partners from around the European Union. This diverse group has been trying to figure out how to connect people to their seas and to help them better understand the complex human-ocean relationship. The reason is simple: if people have better knowledge they will make responsible decisions – in other words, they will become 'ocean literate'.

• But who needs to know what? 
• What are the target audiences? 
• What kind of information is needed? 
• What are the best channels or methods to transmit information to these audiences? 
• How do we encourage people to become more knowledgeable, to make responsible decisions and change their behaviour? 
• And why, sometimes, don’t we act even if we have the right information?

The project has developed and tested the effectiveness of several innovative 'ocean literacy tools' for different audiences.