Renowned Irish Surfer Champions ‘Blue Health’
- 3 days ago
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Why Surfer-Scholar Easkey Britton Shares 'Blue Space' Science with the World
Ask any surfer—or person who loves being near the water—and they’ll tell you that “the ocean heals.” The saltwater, rhythm of the waves and tides, and even the silence of open water are all known to be therapeutic.
What was once anecdotal knowledge about the power of the ocean is now backed by a growing body of scientific research in a field known as “blue health” or “blue space” science.
Surfers are especially aware of the need for humans to reciprocate the care that water provides. Confronted daily with plastic trash and tangled fishing gear, a growing number are taking action to protect aquatic ecosystems and ensure that water environments remain a source of healing for everyone.
Advancing Blue Health Research
For five-time Irish surfing champion, scientist, and social ecologist Easkey Britton, the ocean is far more than a place for recreation. It is a presence in a relationship that has shaped her identity, informed her research, and inspired her advocacy for healthier connections between people and aquatic environments.
Britton grew up on Ireland’s west coast, where the sea was part of everyday life. “Not somewhere separate you visited, but something woven into identity, rhythm, and belonging,” she told The Earth & I. As a child, she understood that being near the ocean changed how she felt. “The ocean became a space where I could process emotion without needing to explain it.”
Today, Britton is helping to advance the growing field of blue health research—the idea that oceans, lakes, rivers, and coastlines can positively impact human health.
What Is Blue Health?
Blue health refers to the physical, psychological, and social benefits associated with spending time in and around water environments. Researchers have found that blue spaces can reduce stress, improve mood, encourage physical activity, restore attention, and strengthen feelings of connection to nature.
But Britton believes the concept extends beyond individual well-being. “It’s about understanding how our relationship with water shapes us biologically, psychologically, and socially.”
“It’s about understanding how our relationship with water shapes us biologically, psychologically, and socially.”
Being near bodies of water, she says, helps “regulate the nervous system in ways we’re only beginning to fully understand scientifically.”
The idea also carries an important reciprocal dimension. Blue care recognizes that healing is relational. Healthy ecosystems support human well-being, and humans can respond through conservation, sustainable practices, and responsible stewardship.
The Science behind Water’s Healing Effects
“This concept of blue health will only become more important in the future, as growing cities will want to utilize the waterways around which they are often built, be it a river, a lake, or on a coast,” Noah Fried, PhD candidate at the University of Vienna and coauthor of a soon-to-be-released research paper on blue spaces, told The Earth & I.
Water’s significant cooling properties, for instance, help to reduce the so-called “urban heat island” effect—where concrete and asphalt store heat and radiate it back into the air. “This reduction of temperature around water already does wonders for physical and mental health during a hot day,” added Fried.
Research conducted by Britton and colleagues in 2018 found that blue space health impacts included “self-esteem, self-efficacy, social confidence, resilience, and other psychological indicators (e.g., stress, mood),” as well as “prosocial behavior.”
A study by Dr. Michael White and colleagues in the UK found evidence that access to “safe, clean and attractive blue spaces has a range of potential health and well-being benefits, due to a variety of mechanisms (e.g., lower temperatures, increased physical activity, lower stress, encouraging quality time with friends and family) and for a wide range of people.”
Researchers also point to two influential frameworks—Attention Restoration Theory and Stress Reduction Theory—to explain why blue spaces can be so restorative.
Water environments provide opportunities for mental recovery, helping replenish cognitive resources and reduce stress. Originally developed to explain the benefits of nature more broadly, these theories are increasingly being applied to aquatic environments.
“More recently, we have found that water can also provide these characteristics, and that it is at least as good as ‘regular nature’ for cognitive restoration or stress reduction,” Fried said.
For Britton, the most remarkable finding is the breadth of water’s influence.
“What surprised me most was how multidimensional the benefits are—it’s never just one thing,” she said. “The healing potential comes from a combination of movement, sensory immersion, community, memory, meaning, and ecological connection—engaging us as whole beings.”
“The healing potential comes from a combination of movement, sensory immersion, community, memory, meaning, and ecological connection—engaging us as whole beings.”
Surfing as a Pathway to Connection
Scientific research increasingly supports what many surfers have long experienced. Surf therapy programs are now being used around the world to support mental health, addiction recovery, youth well-being, and post-traumatic stress disorder treatment.
While many forms of water recreation can support well-being, surfing uniquely combines several elements associated with blue health: immersion in water, physical activity, mindfulness, concentration, and social connection.
For Britton, surfing transformed her relationship with the ocean.
“Competitive surfing taught me discipline and resilience, but it also taught me how to listen,” she said. “The ocean doesn’t respond to force or control. It’s an environment that quickly teaches you to adapt, pay attention, and move in response to changing conditions.”
Surfing deepened an already profound relationship with the sea.
“There’s something profoundly regulating about immersion in moving water—the sensory experience, the need to be present, the humility it demands,” Britton said. “It wasn’t about escape; it was about connection.”
“The ocean reminds us that we are part of something larger, dynamic, and alive. And how that, in itself, can be deeply healing.”
“The ocean reminds us that we are part of something larger, dynamic, and alive. And how that, in itself, can be deeply healing.”
Waiting for waves encourages a heightened awareness of wind, currents, wildlife, and weather. Over time, that awareness becomes something deeper. “The sea stops being a backdrop and becomes a teacher,” Britton said.
New Research on Blue Spaces
Researchers continue to uncover new insights into how different water environments affect human health.
Fried’s mentor at the University of Vienna, Prof. Mathew White, is a leading expert in health and environmental psychology and recipient of the Delcroix Prize for Oceans and Human Health. Forthcoming research from White and colleagues suggests that activities involving direct contact with water—even something as simple as wading in the shallows—provide greater mental health benefits than remaining on shore.
The team found that oceans, rivers, and lakes all offer psychological benefits, although oceans may provide a slight advantage.
“This might be because the sea is more visually expansive, or because it often seems more natural than a lake or river with a managed shore,” Fried suggested.
Research by White and colleagues also suggests that environmental type and quality, visit characteristics, and individual factors influence how people experience blue spaces.
From Personal Healing to Public Health
To fully realize the benefits of blue health, many researchers find that human rights, equity, sustainability, and social justice must be considered alongside environmental protection.
To fully realize the benefits of blue health, many researchers find that human rights, equity, sustainability, and social justice must be considered alongside environmental protection.
Fried notes that women, older adults, and people with lower incomes or educational attainment may derive particularly strong mental health benefits from blue-space visits.
“If people do not feel safe and if the environment seems neglected, they cannot relax and take their mind off everyday worries,” Fried said. “If properly taken care of, blue spaces can improve public health in the long run and stave off some adverse effects of climate change.”
One notable example comes from Glasgow, Scotland, where the regeneration of a neglected urban canal produced measurable public health improvements over a 17-year period in nearby communities.
“Inclusive access to high-quality blue spaces has large implications for public health,” Fried said.
“Inclusive access to high-quality blue spaces has large implications for public health.”
Why Access Matters
For Britton, blue health science raises an important question: Who gets access to these benefits? “Access to healthy water environments is becoming an issue of social and environmental justice,” she said.
Not everyone can safely or easily experience coastlines, rivers, or lakes. Barriers may include geography, economic circumstances, disability, pollution, cultural exclusion, or historical inequities.
“We also know that communities most affected by environmental degradation are often those least responsible for it,” Britton added.
Bridging Cultures through Water
Britton’s work has also shown how water can connect people across social and cultural divides.
Through projects in other countries—including Iran—she has used surfing as a vehicle for community building and cultural exchange.
“You can arrive in a coastal community with a different language, religion, or politics, but once people enter the water together, something shifts,” Britton said.
“You can arrive in a coastal community with a different language, religion, or politics, but once people enter the water together, something shifts,” Britton said.
“Water has always connected cultures through migration, trade, story, and memory,” Britton added. “Reconnecting with that shared relationship is especially important in a time when many societies feel increasingly fragmented.”
Healing Water, Healing Ourselves
As blue health science advances, Britton sees an opportunity to bring together research, storytelling, and community action.
“Science helps us understand the measurable impacts of environmental change and the health benefits of water connection,” she said. “But science alone doesn’t necessarily move people emotionally.”
Stories help transform information into meaning and community action.
“Relationships with water are rarely individual; they’re cultural and collective,” Britton said. Whether through surfing groups, swimming communities, coastal restoration projects, or intergenerational knowledge-sharing, communities help sustain care over time.
Ultimately, she believes restoring our relationship with water requires both environmental and cultural renewal.
“Restoring our relationship with water requires both inner and outer change,” Britton said. “We need healthier ecosystems, but we also need cultural stories that remind us we belong to the living world—and are not separate from it.”
*Natasha Spencer-Jolliffe is a freelance journalist and editor. Over the past 14 years, Natasha has reported for a host of publications, exploring the wider world and industries from environmental, scientific, business, legal, and sociological perspectives. Natasha has also been interviewed as an insight provider for research institutes and conferences.
Editorial notes
Sources:
Interview with Easkey Britton, five-time surfing champion, scientist and social ecologist
Interview with Noah Fried, PhD Student, STRENGTH Research Platform, Strengthening Resilience and Preparedness to Prevent and React to Emerging Socio-Natural Hazards and Risks Environmental Psychology Group | University of Vienna
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