At NorthEast Experience, we help destinations and businesses shape responsible tourism through education, experience design, and storytelling. We believe travel should honor people, place, and planet—answering the growing global demand for experiences that are not only memorable, but also meaningful and responsible.
Recently, we spoke with Lesley Robb—Founder and Principal Consultant at Swell Impact and a valued collaborator on the NorthEast Experience team—whose work powerfully aligns with this vision.
Based in Nova Scotia, Lesley brings a rich perspective on the importance of place-based identity—especially the central role the ocean plays in shaping coastal communities, cultures, and economies.
Read on to explore Lesley’s insights and the deep connections between marine identity and regenerative tourism.
The Ocean Is Our Identity – By Lesley Robb
As a Nova Scotian, though raised near the Great Lakes, I’ve come to see the ocean not just as scenery, but as identity. Its tides shape how we live, work, and welcome. I’m proud of our enduring connection to the ocean. We’re known for warm maritime hospitality and rugged coastlines – a blend that offers visitors a truly distinctive experience. But this connection is more than scenic beauty or friendly welcomes; it’s woven into the rhythms of daily life, culture, and identity along our shores. The ocean is not just a backdrop; it’s a vital part of who we are. This idea is at the heart of a growing global conversation about marine identity, and how it can transform the way we approach coastal tourism.
What is Marine Identity?
The concept of marine identity is far from simple. As I recently read through groundbreaking research from Dr. Pamela Buchan and her international team of marine researchers, I was struck by how their findings could revolutionize the way we approach coastal tourism. Their paper, published in People and Nature, introduces us to the concept of “marine identity”—”an identity rooted in the way in which the ocean as a place supports the sense of self.
“We find marine identity to be a complex and multidimensional concept, suffused with individual experiences and understandings of the marine environment, based on social and cultural understandings of the ocean, contemporarily and historically” (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2300).
It has profound implications for how we design tourism experiences that honor both host communities and the marine environments on which they depend. This research suggests that our “marine identity” can be a powerful tool for protecting the coastlines and waters that define us.
Through photo voice methodology and workshops with researchers and practitioners from 17 countries, the study uncovered diverse expressions of marine identity, including:
- Cultural Heritage: From traditional fishing boats in Greece to Aawambo traditional jewellery – called onyoka- made with seashells worn during important ceremonies in Namibia (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2314).
- Spiritual Connections: For example, in Māori culture, the sea is considered the source of life, and people are descendants of Tangaroa, god of the sea (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2312).
- Livelihood Dependencies: Many coastal communities rely on the ocean for fishing, tourism, and sustenance.
- Sensory Experiences: The physical and emotional connections people feel while diving, swimming, or engaging in coastal recreation.
These elements reveal how marine identity is woven into daily life but often overlooked in conventional tourism narratives.
The Challenge for Coastal Tourism
Traditional coastal tourism tends to treat the ocean as a scenic backdrop—a place for photos and recreation. However, this approach overlooks the deeper relationships coastal communities have with their marine environments.
The research warns that “environmental flux and the alterations to everyday life are, therefore, likely to produce altered senses of place and place-based identity.” When tourism development ignores these connections, it risks eroding marine identities.
Examples from the study illustrate this loss:
- In Indonesia, government policies have shifted livelihoods away from fisheries toward tourism, displacing traditional communities.(Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2313)
- In the Aegean Sea, traditional boats are being replaced by motorboats and ferries, leading to environmental degradation and cultural disconnection. (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2314).
Such changes threaten both the environment and the cultural fabric of coastal communities.
Regenerative Tourism Through Marine Identity
Regenerative tourism offers a hopeful alternative. Instead of extracting value from coastal destinations, what if tourism could actually strengthen marine identities and support ocean stewardship?
The research suggests that “marine citizenship is positively influenced by relationships that people have with marine environments, as well as by values, marine place attachment (thalassophilia), and marine place dependency.” (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2301). When people develop strong connections to the ocean, they are more likely to become advocates for its protection.
Around the world, initiatives—like youth ocean programs in Spain, reef guardians in Australia, and community-led ecotourism in East Africa—show how tourism can nurture conservation through deep connection.
Designing Tourism Experiences That Honour Marine Identity
How can we design tourism experiences that respect and celebrate marine identity?
Celebrate Local Ocean Relationships
Tourism experiences should highlight the unique ways communities connect with the sea. In Nova Scotia, this could include the region’s fishing heritage, the Mi’kmaq’s relationship with coastal waters, or the ocean’s role in Acadian culture. The research shows that “dependency upon the ocean was a predominant and recurring theme” in personal narratives around recreation, livelihood, food, health, and well-being.(Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2305).
Create Immersive Learning Opportunities
Programs like the Save The Med Foundation’s Changemakers Project provide inspiring examples: teenagers spend a week at sea as citizen scientists, forming meaningful bonds with marine life and each other. One participant said, “These five days have been incredible, amazing. I’ve experienced so many things I’ve never experienced before… My favourite part was being able to be part of this family and share my ideas and being able to be listened to by other people, professionals” (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2309).
Support Traditional Practices
Tourism can fund and preserve marine-related traditions. The research highlights how traditional crafts, lighthouses, and ancient settlements are tangible heritage, while “fishing techniques and storytelling” reflect intangible connections to the sea. Supporting these practices allows communities to shape tourism on their own terms.
Foster Genuine Cultural Exchange
Go beyond performative tourism by creating opportunities for authentic interaction. Workshops with local fishers, storytelling with elders, or co-created sea-inspired art foster empathy and deepen understanding between hosts and visitors. The study calls for ‘marine stakeholders’ to be broadly engaged and meaningfully involved in decision-making. (Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2317).
The Nova Scotia Connection
Lesley Robb reflects that even though she grew up near the Great Lakes, living on the Atlantic coast has revealed the profound truth behind Dr. Buchan’s findings: the ocean is not just scenic beauty but identity, resilience, and stewardship.
The research notes that “people who have experienced the sea during family holidays as children often carry a lifelong desire to live by the sea, sometimes even moving abroad to realize this desire.” This speaks to the transformative power of meaningful ocean experiences—the very goal regenerative tourism should strive for.
Moving Forward
The study concludes with a powerful call to action:
“Marine identity, and how it influences global marine citizenship, must be a topic of interest to scholars from multiple disciplines. However, we find marine identity to be central to capturing humanity’s dynamic and diverse relationship with the ocean and, as such, a fundamental mechanism for contributing to or catalyzing restoration of society’s relationship with the ocean.”(Buchan et al., 2024, p. 2318).
For coastal destinations, this is both an opportunity and a responsibility. By designing tourism experiences that strengthen marine identities, communities can foster lasting advocacy for ocean conservation.
The ocean is not just our backdrop—it’s our identity. Shared authentically and respectfully, this identity may be the key to creating tourism that truly regenerates rather than depletes the places we love.
Join the Conversation
What marine or ecosystem identities resonate with you? How might tourism in your region better honor local relationships with water and coast? Share your thoughts on how we can create meaningful connections between visitors and the marine environments that shape coastal communities.
At NorthEast Experience, this is what we do. We work with destinations, communities, and businesses to design place-based experiences that inspire stewardship, elevate local identity, and give back to the ecosystems that support them. If you’re exploring ways to align tourism with conservation and community values, reach out—we’d love to collaborate.
Buchan, P. M., Glithero, L. D., McKinley, E., Strand, M., Champion, G., Kochalski, S., Velentza, K., Praptiwi, R. A., Jung, J., Márquez, M. C., Marra, M. V., Abels, L. M., Neilson, A. L., Spavieri, J., Whittey, K. E., Samuel, M. M., Hale, R., Čermák, A., Whyte, D., West, L., Stithou, M., Hegland, T. J., Morris-Webb, E. S., Flander-Putrle, V., Schiefer, P., Sutton, S., Onwubiko, C., Adeoye, O., Akpan, A., & Payne, D. L. (2024). A transdisciplinary co-conceptualisation of marine identity. People and Nature, 6(6), 2300–2324. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10715
