Marine and maritime cultural heritage can have a strong hold on people’s imaginations, contributing to sense of place within communities as well as attracting domestic and international tourism. However, marine and maritime cultural heritage is often fragmented. Traditional institutional divisions separate what is in the sea, what is from the sea and what is by the sea despite new technologies making marine and maritime cultural heritage much more visible and accessible. There is both a need and an opportunity to develop new models for engaging society in the history of its seamless sea.

The 2016 Policy Forum was intended to encourage connectivity in public engagement. It provided an innovative opportunity to discuss how we can increase the social and economic benefits of marine and maritime cultural heritage by bringing together audiences and joining-up diverse assets, resources and research.