PhD Student: Ho-Chung Tam; Partner: Dorset Council; Supervisors: Dr. Faye Sayer, Prof. Kirsty Edgar and Dr. Richard Sayer; Department of History
Natural and earth-based heritage sites, such as coastlines, geological formations, and landscapes shaped over deep time, are increasingly recognised as places that can support human well-being. However, while there is growing interest in the health and well-being benefits of nature and heritage, there is limited understanding of how people engage with earth heritage, how these experiences affect well-being, and how sites can be designed or managed to support positive outcomes for visitors and local communities.
Focusing on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, this project explores how engagement with earth heritage contributes to well-being and how this potential can be strengthened through participatory, community-led approaches. The research adopts a qualitative-led mixed-methods design.
The first phase uses community-based participatory research with local residents, visitors, site managers, and other stakeholders. Through interviews, workshops, and collaborative activities, the study explores how people experience earth heritage, what enables or limits meaningful engagement, and how these experiences relate to well-being. This phase will co-develop a pilot intervention that supports visitors’ and local communities’ well-being by strengthening people’s capability, opportunity, and motivation to engage with earth heritage.
The second phase uses quantitative methods, informed by the qualitative findings, to evaluate the effects of the co-developed intervention on engagement with earth heritage and selected well-being outcomes. This may include survey-based measures, observational indicators, or behavioural metrics, depending on the intervention.
By combining community-based participatory research with behavioural theory, this project aims to generate practical insights for heritage management while contributing to wider debates on earth heritage, human well-being, and sustainable engagement with geologically significant landscapes.