November 2019

Authors: Moira O’Neil and Nicky Hawkins 

As part our Valuing the Ocean programme, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (UK Branch) has been exploring the power of framing messages (making choices about what to say and how to say it) to create a new ‘sea story’. 

In 2017, the Foundation published Getting Below the Surface, a ground-breaking report from the FrameWorks Institute into how the public thinks about the ocean. Turning the Tide builds on insights from this work and on new research to provide a ‘first aid kit’ for ocean reframing.  It sets out strategies to deepen public understanding of ocean health and build support for the systemic solutions that can aid its recovery.

This framing guide, which accompanies the report, helps turn the findings into clear communications dos and don’ts. Taken together, the findings point to a broader strategy for effectively communicating about the ocean and marine conservation.