The Living Seas team sits within the Policy and Advocacy team within the Scottish Wildlife Trust. From general enquiries, policy and advocacy, community empowerment and project delivery, we do it all!
We enjoy working collaboratively to achieve our vision of healthy, resilient marine ecosystems. Here are some of the networks that the Living Seas team collectively is a part of:
This video from our earlier Oceans of Value project shows some of the values that interviewees across the Orkney Islands place on their local marine environment. It’s a beautiful watch or listen and the 30 minute film has even been broken down into smaller bite-size chapters for easier viewing while on the go. Do you agree or disagree with any of the values shared? Use the film to prompt discussion with others and let us know your thoughts.
Sea the Connection
Our new project, Sea the Connection runs from now until October 2027 and aims to increase ocean literacy across Scotland, giving lesser heard voices accessible, inclusive and meaningful opportunities to join marine decision-making conversations. Together with communities, we’ll be co-designing activities that enable people to share their values, expertise and insights at a policy level. By doing so, we’ll emphasise the appetite for, and impacts of, authentic community-led marine management approaches, that put communities at the heart of the decision-making processes which affect them.
Keep an eye on our channels in the coming months for opportunities to get involved as the project develops. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you’d like to get involved! Find out more here:
Rebecca is our Marine Policy Officer, having first joined the Trust in 2022 to work on the Oceans of Value project. The current focus for our policy and advocacy work is marine protection, marine planning and facilitating community involvement in decision-making.
Originally from Caithness, Rebecca completed her undergraduate at the University of Glasgow in 2014 before moving back up to the North of Scotland to do a Masters in Marine Resource Management at the Heriot Watt University Campus in Orkney. She has since worked for a range of conservation projects and organisations across Scotland, from peatland moths to regional marine planning, with a focus on community/stakeholder engagement. As a keen artist and crafter Rebecca is excited to see the development of the Sea the Connection project which will explore different ways of engaging with people about the sea.
Elouise is a passionate ocean explorer and science-policy communicator.
Seven years of higher education led to Elouise specialising in marine mammal studies, which takes her on adventures across the world (out-with the Trust, Elouise has been contracted to work offshore in 11 other countries to date as a marine mammal biologist, most recently in Greenland).
Closer to home, Elouise enjoys travels across Scotland to get to know the many inspiring individuals and communities safeguarding Scotland’s seas. As a BSAC Snorkel Instructor and Guide, she has collaborated with coastal communities to create the snorkel trails and continues to support Scotland’s Snorkel Trail Network. Elouise is interested in applying creative, social-science approaches to marine policy to help people connect meaningfully with the sea, explore ocean relationships and values and improve ocean accessibility. She is proud to champion the importance of using inclusive and accessible policy approaches in order to achieve authentic community-led marine decision-making.
In her spare time she is a Trustee for the charity Eco Drama, a dance fitness instructor and her happy place is a day by the beach with her family (westie Max and chocolate lab Kira often star in Elouise’s ocean adventures!).
After completing a Masters in Oceanography at the University of Southampton in 2013, Jessica began her career in the Falkland Islands as a Scientific Fisheries Observer, working on trawling vessels for long periods of time. She worked in the Falkland Islands Fisheries Department for 7 years. During this time, she worked between the University of Aberdeen and the Falkland Islands completing her PhD in squid ecology and migration, before moving to the USA to work for the US government (NOAA) on their squid stock assessments.
She moved to Scotland in 2022, working with a regional coastal partnership before joining the Trust. Jessica loves to get out of the office and show people the amazing snorkel trail network and would like to do more diving this summer to experience more of the stunning marine life that Scotland has to offer!
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