Ocean Health: A Journey with Sarah Cosgrove

28 April 2025

Discover Sarah Cosgrove's journey from marine biologist to founder of Restore Blue, promoting nature-positive offshore wind energy.

When we set out to create The Power Tomorrow campaign, we wanted to explore the stories behind the transition to clean energy—not just the technology, but the people driving it. On the west coast of Ireland, nestled in the wild beauty of North Sligo, we met a woman whose life has been shaped, stirred, and steered by the ocean: Sarah Cosgrove, marine biologist and founder of Restore Blue.

Sarah isn’t just passionate about the sea—she’s built her life around it. Filming her for the Marine Biologist episode reminded us that the road to a sustainable future is deeply personal. It’s not just about wind turbines and cables. It’s about connection. It’s about care. And it’s about a culture shift that embraces innovation while honouring the ecosystems we depend on.

Born of Saltwater

Sarah’s love story with the ocean began where so many great ones do—close to home. Growing up along Ireland’s rugged west coast, the sea was more than a backdrop; it was her playground, her classroom, and eventually, her calling.

“I started bodyboarding when I was very young, snorkeling, sea swimming. That was my happy place,” she told us as we filmed along the shoreline she still escapes to for perspective. “There’s something special about the tranquility underwater—it always felt like a whole other world.”

That connection never left her. As a student, biology came naturally, and her best mark in English? An essay titled The Sea. It was a clear sign—she had found her voice and her purpose.

A Scientific Path, an Emotional Pull

Sarah followed her passion to the University of Galway to study marine science, later completing a PhD focused on phytoplankton—the tiny organisms that form the base of the ocean food chain and produce much of the oxygen we breathe. Her research took her around the world, from the North Atlantic to a ship sailing between Germany and South Africa. It was on those voyages that she felt most alive: “I could have lived at sea,” she said, smiling.

But her path was far from smooth. A postdoctoral position in the U.S. brought her face-to-face with the devastation of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. What she discovered shocked her: the chemical dispersants used in the cleanup were more toxic to phytoplankton than the oil itself.

It was a defining moment.

“That opened my eyes,” she said. “We were treating the surface, the visible impact, but ignoring the base of the food chain. It was devastating.”

That realisation propelled her out of fossil-fuel disaster zones and into a future focused on sustainability and nature-positive energy solutions.

Building Restore Blue

After returning to Ireland, Sarah joined marine consultancy projects in offshore energy. But something was missing.

“I saw there was very little support for developers in the area of marine restoration,” she explained. “How do you plan a nature-inclusive design? How do you do that with data, with intention?”

So she created Restore Blue—an organisation that uses smart marine data, satellite imagery, ecological research, and policy alignment to help offshore wind developers design projects that don’t just avoid harm, but actively support marine life.

At the heart of Restore Blue’s work is a proprietary database of nearly 200 nature-positive solutions from around the world: from artificial reef modules that shelter juvenile fish, to seabed-friendly cable protection mats that support seaweed and coral growth. These aren’t theoretical tools—they’re real, tested innovations that can transform how we build offshore energy systems.

Designing with Nature in Mind

One of the most eye-opening segments of our filming came when Sarah broke down how offshore wind infrastructure can actually enhance marine biodiversity. It’s not something most people associate with turbines in the sea—but that’s part of what makes her story so compelling.

She walked us through how:

• Scour protection (rock beds placed around turbine bases) becomes shelter for crabs, lobsters, and juvenile fish.
  
  
• Marine mattresses and cable coverings offer substrate for algae, corals, and seaweed to flourish.
  
  
• Artificial reefs can be designed to attract specific species depending on the site’s needs.
  
  
• And acoustic monitoring, satellite tracking, and underwater cameras now give us unparalleled insight into how marine mammals and fish behave around wind farms.

In other words, this technology can work with nature—not against it.

From Mitigation to Restoration

One of Sarah’s key messages is the need to move from a mindset of damage control to one of regeneration. For years, energy projects focused on how to reduce impact. Now, she argues, we need to go a step further.

“We’ve got to stop thinking about just mitigating harm,” she said. “It’s time to ask: how can we give back?”

Through Restore Blue, she works with developers from pre-planning all the way to decommissioning, offering tailored nature-inclusive strategies that align with environmental impact assessments and policy standards. And crucially, she translates complex ecological data into language that coastal communities, schools, NGOs, and stakeholders can understand.

This matters. Because for offshore wind to succeed, it must be embraced—not imposed.

Changing the Narrative

Sarah believes passionately in community engagement. Her team tailors communication materials for different audiences so everyone—from a school group in Donegal to a fisherman in Wexford—can understand what offshore wind means for their future.

She emphasises the importance of involving people early and honestly, listening to local knowledge, and encouraging people to participate in consultations.

“We need to create digestible communication outputs. Reports don’t have to be data-heavy. We can tell these stories in plain language,” she said.

This is about building trust, something Sarah believes is essential for Ireland’s clean energy future.

Ireland’s Opportunity

Ireland’s offshore wind story is still being written, but the potential is enormous. As Sarah pointed out, our land mass is only one-seventh of our ocean space, and we have some of the best wind resources in the world.

The shift is already underway. From fixed turbines on the East Coast to floating wind technology planned for the deeper waters of the West, projects are in the pipeline—and Restore Blue is working to ensure they’re done right.

“There’s potential for so much more,” she told us. “And if we plan this well, it doesn’t just mean clean energy. It means thriving marine life, restored ecosystems, and empowered communities.”

Looking Under the Surface

During our shoot in North Sligo, we followed Sarah into the water. It wasn’t just for the visuals—it was to understand her point of view, quite literally. “On land, we can see what we’re planning for,” she said. “Offshore, we have to dive in.”

And when she does, she sees hope.

She sees life already colonising artificial reefs.

She sees the potential for data collection that spans five, ten, even twenty years—data that could transform how we plan, build, and retire offshore energy infrastructure.

And most of all, she sees the chance for a new kind of relationship between humans and the sea.

A Ten-Year-Old’s Dream

At one point in our interview, we asked Sarah what she would have thought, as a ten-year-old, looking out at an offshore wind farm.

“I think I would feel proud,” she said. “If I understood what it was giving us—if I knew how it helped marine life, and our climate—I would feel empowered by it.”

That stuck with us. Because this campaign isn’t just about turbines or transmission lines. It’s about the future. And it's about making that future something we can all feel proud of.

The Power of Tomorrow

Sarah’s story reminds us that the power of tomorrow is not just about energy. It’s about legacy. It’s about the lives we touch and the world we choose to protect. It’s about a little girl who loved the sea so much she built a life trying to understand it—and now dedicates that life to restoring it.

From coastlines to classrooms, from data dashboards to diver’s masks, Sarah Cosgrove is showing us what’s possible when passion meets purpose.

And as Ireland leans into its offshore wind potential, voices like hers will light the way.

Watch Sarah’s full story in The Power Tomorrow: Marine Biologist, and learn more about how Restore Blue is reimagining offshore energy, one reef, one species, and one conversation at a time.