Nearly a year since most of us left campus we are certainly missing the fascinating conversations you end up having in the coffee room, corridors or at campus events. In order to recreate the sense of community we get from being on campus the Future Places Centre organised a virtual ‘pop-up’ common room; a place for conversation without a supply of biscuits unfortunately. We were joined by researchers from across campus who are working on the many aspects of Morecambe Bay and its surrounds, as well as those who are interested in place-based approaches to research. It was apparent that there is a wonderful diversity of projects across campus from people focusing on the shifting sands of the bay and its future as a landscape, to others working on place-based decision-making and entrepreneurship. We’ve captured some of the breadth of research happening across the bay on this campus map.

Our conversation started in the sands of the bay where Ada Pringle introduced her geomorphological research on Morecambe Bay and its coasts since the 1960s. From 1984 it has focused on the cyclic saltmarshes in the Kent Estuary. Monthly monitoring of the Silverdale saltmarsh traced its erosion, begun in about 1975 when the main channel swung east, until its disappearance by 2010. After the main Kent channel shifted west at the start of 2007 monthly monitoring of the erosion of the Grange-over-Sands saltmarsh has taken place. In order to attempt to explain these saltmarsh changes it is necessary to analyse the constantly varying influences of winds, waves and tides together with the changing rates of flow down the river. The physical patterns in the bay are forever changing with features emerging and then being hidden again by the force of water. These changes out in the bay impact on the coastal edges, with sandbanks both directing and being molded by water flows that in turn result in changing patterns of coastal erosion including the loss and formation of valuable saltmarsh habitats. These saltmarshes are both an ecological treasure and also an effective, natural sea defense. David Howard from UKCEH spoke about his work with students in the Lancaster Engineering department looking at the multi-functional opportunities and challenges associated with erecting a tidal barrage across the bay, for renewable energy and coastal protection. A barrage has the potential to change the interactions of people across the bay, linking the South West of Cumbria to the Lancashire coast with benefits for transportation (hauliers and medics), economics (jobs, recreation) and social issues (poverty reduction) that need to be considered along with the impacts on the bay’s ecology and the shifting nature of the sands themselves.

We then turned landwardshearing from Serena Pollastri and Liz Edwards on their Biodiversity Logbooks project with local schools. Their work addresses the growing issue of ‘plant blindness’ in society generally and focuses on the importance of “learning to see”. Using a mixture of approaches including observational drawing of plants and photographic impressions (cyanotypes) of nature specimens collected from the Morecambe Bay area. The hope is that over time engaging with plants on different levels can help to build an appreciation of the biodiversity that can be found even in unassuming urban locations. Liz also shared ‘The Lost Sounds’ project which uses art, sound and programming to invite people to explore their local area and tune into the rhythm of the seasons and the wildlife around them. The project started in Morecambe Bay with a focus on the birds of the bay and surrounding landscapes. As bird numbers decline the soundscape of our local area is changing, this project captures these soundscapes and raises local awareness of what is being lost.

We also heard from others who are interested in place-based approaches more generally and are interested in working on projects focused on the Bay and its people. Andy Yuille spoke about his work looking at participatory democracy across issues such as planning and climate action. He outlined an embryonic proposal to map the ‘ecologies of participation’ on environmental issues in the area, focusing on how different kinds of knowledge and value are deployed and generated in different participatory encounters, and how they travel between them. His research looks to better understand how to avoid community empowerment initiatives reproducing existing power imbalances in decision-making processes. Joanne Larty and Ed Mckeever introduced their work into place-based entrepreneurial thinking and education, and their interest in understanding the role of place (people, communities, environment) in the entrepreneurial process. How can this support sustainable regional growth particularly in places on which are geographically located on a periphery such as Morecambe Bay? Ben Harrison from The Work Foundation (a Lancaster University based Think-tank) spoke about not just increasing work opportunities in a place but also the need to address growing issues related to worker insecurity and mental health particularly at this time.

We’re looking forward to hosting another ‘pop-up’ common room on the 22^nd April (11-11.45). If you’d be interested to join please email Louise Bush (l.bush@lancaster.ac.uk) for details. If you’re doing research in the bay or are interested in place-based approaches to research and want to be added to the campus map please fill out this short form: https://forms.office.com/r/MXx2cD2f7W

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  Karen Lloyd Writer in Residence

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