A magazine titled Changing Tides lies partially submerged at the edge of a shoreline, with gentle waves washing over it and grass visible nearby under a dim, cloudy sky.

08 Apr, 2026

From conversation to coastline: designing resilience in the Dyfi Estuary

Dan Sargent, a man with short curly brown hair and a goatee, smiles whilst standing indoors in a plain white long-sleeved shirt. Flowers and large windows brighten the background.

By Dan Sargent, Creative Director

Some places stay with you long after you’ve left them. For us, the Dyfi Estuary is one of those places.

Over the past year, we’ve spent a lot of time there, working with RSPB and Tir Canol on Changing Tides, a project exploring how communities around the estuary can understand and prepare for a changing coastline.

Last Friday, we joined partners and residents at Aberystwyth Arts Centre to launch the finished handbook and microsite. It brought together many of the people who had contributed to the project over the past 18 months, including community members, researchers, artists and environmental organisations.

But, like most meaningful projects, the real story isn’t the final output. It’s everything that happened along the way.

People stand around a table with stacks of books titled Changing Tides and Newid Llanw, signing papers and collecting copies at what appears to be a book launch or registration event.

A group of people indoors are engaged in conversation. An older woman wearing glasses and a green coat is smiling and holding a walking stick, while an older man beside her also smiles. Other people are visible in the background.

A stack of brochures titled Changing Tides and Newid Llanw, featuring landscape photos of water and land, displayed on a table.

A person sits on a red chair and reads an open book or magazine featuring images and diagrams of marine life, including a close-up of a sea creature under the heading Species and habitats.

A person holds and reads a magazine or booklet featuring a photo of two older adults smiling and sitting together, with printed text on the page. The person's hands and part of their sleeve are visible.

A group of people sit in a dark cinema watching a film featuring a dolphin jumping out of the water, with white subtitles visible on the screen.

A coastline that will never stay still

The Dyfi estuary is one of the most important landscapes in Wales. It sits within a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and includes internationally recognised habitats such as Cors Fochno, the Ynyslas sand dunes and the RSPB Ynys-hir reserve.

These habitats support an extraordinary diversity of wildlife, from rare butterflies and orchids to overwintering geese, dolphins and seals. The estuary’s salt marshes, dunes and peatlands also play a vital role in protecting the landscape itself, absorbing water, reducing wave energy and storing carbon.

It’s also a landscape that has always been changing. The coastline we see today is the result of more than 11,000 years of shifting rivers, rising seas and migrating dunes (source: Changing Tides).

What’s different now is the pace of change.

Climate projections suggest sea levels along the Ceredigion coast could rise by 0.8 to 1.07 metres by 2075, while river flows in the catchment could increase by 30 to 70 per cent by the end of the century (source: Changing Tides).

For communities living around the estuary, these changes are not distant possibilities. They’re already part of everyday life.

Aerial view of a winding river flowing into the sea, with sandy beaches, tidal flats, and a coastal town set against green hills under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

A seal's head pokes out above the surface of choppy, greenish sea water, with only its nose, eyes, and whiskers visible.

A close-up of a muddy horse with wet fur and mane, standing outdoors in a natural setting with blurred trees and another horse in the background. The scene appears overcast and damp.

A person in a purple jacket extends a hand towards a muddy horse standing on a leaf-covered path in a wooded area. Other horses and people are partially visible in the background.

Four people walk through a field of tall grass under a cloudy sky at sunset, with their figures silhouetted against the light in the distance.

A dolphin swims on its back near the surface of calm water, exposing its underside and dorsal fin, with gentle ripples around it.

Tree stumps emerging from shallow water pools on a sandy beach under a cloudy sky, with distant hills visible on the horizon.

Bringing different voices into the same conversation

The Changing Tides project brought together people from across the community to explore what this future might look like and how they might respond.

Over the course of ten co-design workshops, we met in spaces ranging from Aberystwyth University to small community halls across the estuary.

What made these sessions special was the diversity of voices in the room: Farmers. Teachers. Scientists. Artists. Residents. Business owners. People who experience the landscape in very different ways, but who all care deeply about its future.

One of the most striking things was how open everyone was to learning from each other. As the workshops progressed, perspectives shifted. Ideas evolved. People began to see the coastline through different lenses. Gradually, a shared understanding began to emerge.

What the Dyfi taught us

For me personally, this project has been a humbling one. Living in South Wales, I’m aware of flooding and climate change. But spending time around the Dyfi really brings home the reality of what communities there are dealing with. Storms, rising tides and flooded land aren’t occasional events. They’re part of life.

What struck me most was the resilience of the people we met. Year after year, they adapt, respond and keep going. There’s a quiet determination there that leaves an impression.

Where creativity and community meet

Another thing that stayed with us was the area’s creativity.

The Dyfi estuary is full of people with fascinating perspectives on the landscape around them, from poets and artists to historians and storytellers.

That creativity played an important role in the project. It helped translate complex ideas about coastal science, policy and adaptation into something people could understand and shape together.

In many ways, it reflects the character of the place itself. The landscape influences the people who live there, and those people continue to shape how the landscape is understood.

Turning conversations into something meaningful

The discussions, knowledge and lived experiences shared during the workshops have now been brought together in two key resources.

The first is a printed handbook designed to help communities, landowners and organisations understand coastal change and explore ways to adapt. The second is a dedicated microsite that makes the research, insights and recommendations accessible to a wider audience.

Together, they combine scientific research, local knowledge and policy context into a practical guide for communities navigating the challenges ahead.

A lot of the thinking in the handbook focuses on working with natural processes rather than against them. Salt marshes, dunes and peatlands can absorb water, reduce wave energy and store carbon. Restoring and protecting these habitats can strengthen the resilience of both the landscape and the communities living within it.

Nature is often one of the best forms of infrastructure.

A laptop on wet sand near the water’s edge displays a website titled “CHANGING TIDES”, featuring an aerial photo of a coastal landscape with winding water channels. Hills and cloudy skies are visible in the background.

An open book underwater shows a close-up photo of a hermit crab on the left page and illustrations of various animals and plants with text about species and habitats on the right page. Seaweed is visible around the book.

An open booklet showing a colourful map of a coastal region, surrounded by sand, pebbles, and dry grass. The map highlights rivers, marshes, nature reserves, and several labelled locations.

A book titled “Changing Tides” stands upright underwater among rocks, plants, and pebbles, with the water’s surface visible above and small fish swimming nearby.

What we’ve learnt from the Dyfi

Changing Tides has been led by Tir Canol in partnership with RSPB, with contributions from researchers, artists and communities across the Dyfi estuary.

For our team at Everglow, it’s been a privilege to support the project by translating these conversations into a handbook and a digital platform.

But more importantly, it’s been an opportunity to listen. To hear the stories of people who live and work in this landscape every day. And to understand how knowledge, creativity and collaboration can help communities prepare for the future.

As the handbook itself puts it, shared knowledge is a form of resilience.

The Dyfi coastline will continue to change. But if the past 18 months have shown us anything, it’s that the communities around it have the imagination, determination and openness needed to face that future together.

If you’d like to explore the project in more detail, visit the Changing Tides microsite or follow Tir Canol on Facebook and Instagram.