Europe is decades ahead of the U.S. in offshore wind development. What can we learn from them? Fishery liaisons from the U.K. gave us the download on how they successfully raised fishermen’s voices in the early planning phases of offshore wind across the pond.

Additional Resources:

• “Summary report of the Virtual Floating Offshore Wind (FOW) planning project delivered by NFFO with support from The Crown Estate” (TCE) (2022)

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

How might different ocean users share the waters? These researchers evaluated different offshore technologies in search of opportunities for different people to come together, share resources, and maybe even benefit from one another.

Additional Resources:

• "Sheltering effect of various wave energy converter archetypes for offshore wind turbines" (2025) — http://arxiv.org/abs/2410.13898
• "Marine spatial planning techniques with a case study on wave-powered offshore aquaculture farms" (2025) — DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2024.121791
• "Design and Optimization of a Wave-Powered Aquaculture Farm with a Case Study on Atlantic Salmon Farm in the Northeast US" (in prep.)
• "The potential for co-located offshore wind energy and integrated multi-trophic aquaculture in the Northeast U.S." (in prep.)

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

Who are reporters talking to and how do they frame the information when they’re reporting on offshore wind energy? This research team investigated how information in the media shapes people’s perceptions of new coastal developments.

Additional Resources:

• “Framing the Wind: Media Coverage of Offshore Wind in the Northeastern United States” (2023)
• “Legitimacy through representation? Media sources and discourses of offshore wind development” (2024)
• “Perceived misinformation in offshore wind: Insights from participants in Northeastern U.S. offshore wind planning and permitting processes” (2025)
• “Communication silos: A governance network approach to the offshore wind planning and permitting process” (2025)

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

How does an impactful community engagement process look? How are members of the public consulted, informed and spoken to? This research team looked into how the process itself shapes how communities respond to change. 

Additional Resources:

• “Perceived misinformation in offshore wind: Insights from participants in Northeastern U.S. offshore wind planning and permitting processes” (2025) 
• “Communication silos: A governance network approach to the offshore wind planning and permitting process” (2025) 
• “Uncertainty confounds justice: the offshore wind ‘Devil they don't know’ in the Northeast United States” (2025) 
• “Watered down justice: Experiences of the offshore wind transition in Northeast coastal communities in the United States” (2025) 

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

How can the lobster industry – worth a half billion dollars in Maine – have a voice in marine spatial planning? This research team dove into how proprietary lobstering data can be considered in mapping out the activities taking place on the water.

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

Have you ever experienced a floating wind farm up close? This research team made that possible through virtual reality to find out what people in the Gulf of Maine think about this type of offshore renewable technology.

Additional Resources:

• “Trust, fairness, and transparency: Perceptions of energy justice in Maine's offshore wind planning process” (2025)

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

How do people’s values influence what they think about ocean renewables in coastal communities? This research team published a guide offering community members insights on how to raise their voices in times of change. 

Additional Resources:

• “How to Engage in Offshore Wind Development” (2025)

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form

For Shore is a podcast about our coasts and oceans, hosted by Sea Grant. When you listen, you’ll hear from experts – including scientists, fishermen, community leaders, resource managers, and others – working on topics critical to Sea Grant’s mission. This first season features researchers that the Northeast Sea Grant Consortium funded to look into how coastal communities are potentially impacted by the introduction of new oceanic industries. Fishermen, in particular, are grappling with changes to their industry and the environment they work in. We’re here to have candid conversations that help make marine science and policy accessible and understandable to all - and that includes you. 

Sea Grant plays a unique role in bridging science and community engagement. 

To do so, we are a neutral entity. We value our non-partisan approach to our work, because it allows us to work with all communities, facilitate sometimes tough conversations, and bring people together to find solutions to difficult challenges. 

However, we’ll be vulnerable with you, and say that navigating some complex topics while remaining neutral can be hard. So please have some grace with us, and grace with each other as we listen and learn together. As we go, we might come up with more questions to pursue, and you might have some as well. Please reach out, we’d love to hear from you!  -  Feedback Form