Interviews – The Coastal Society

January 24, 2018August 8, 2018

HAVE YOU MET THESE COASTAL CHAMPIONS?

By Kasey R. Jacobs, TCS Communications Chair

With the same enthusiasm as a mantis shrimp going for a human’s finger, a large group of TCS members click on the Renew Your Membership icon as soon as they get the reminder email in December.

I caught up with the first members to renew for 2018.

These eight coastal champions shared their reasons for renewing, what their hopes are for TCS and their careers in 2018, and, most importantly, what they hope for our coastlines in 2018.

TCS spans disciplines and crosses boundaries like no other professional association. This is what Louisiana Sea Grant Scholar Don Davis told me. The mix of disciplines represented within TCS is evidenced by the first eight members to renew for 2018.

Don W. Davis, Louisiana Sea Grant Scholar

Because there are many policymakers who are TCS members, Don believes the translator-like interpretation needed between scientists and policymakers is eased. Policymakers in TCS help bring scientists successfully into the policy realm and scientists help policymakers navigate coastal jargon and options.

Many TCS members wear multiple hats of scientist and policymaker and everything in between, above, and beneath…

Or teach multiple disciplines, like Lawrence B. Cahoon, 2017 Distinguished Teaching Professor in Biology and Marine Biology for University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Lawrence B. Cahoon, 2017 Distinguished Teaching Professor in Biology and Marine Biology for University of North Carolina Wilmington

Larry hopes that in 2018 the public awareness of coastal management issues (resource and energy development, coastal storm mitigation, sea level rise, and economic transitions) “continues to rise and finds expression in wise policy decisions”. His own goal for this year is to continue to make useful contributions to the science underpinning policy decisions.

Coastal advocates in TCS might agree with Pete Stauffer, Environmental Director for the Surfrider Foundation, in his hopes that “we can empower coastal communities and the public to have a stronger voice in the management decisions that affect our coastlines.”

Pete Stauffer, Environmental Director, Surfrider Foundation

Pete stressed, “It’s never been more important for coastal professionals to network and support each other.”

When Pete told me that TCS has played an important role in his development as a coastal advocate, I was greatly encouraged. I am a former grassroots advocate who misses mobilizing communities. It makes me feel secure that I have TCS to help make transitions to different areas of coastal management if I desire.

Pushing the envelope are coastal scientists conducting applied research. They can help decision makers adopt protocols and standards that bring in the future. Stephen Dickson, a marine geologist at the Maine Geological Survey, has played a pivotal role in forward thinking hazard mitigation strategies.

Stephen Dickson, a marine geologist at the Maine Geological Survey

His recent work includes mitigating coastal bluff erosion with nature-based approaches that mimic and maintain coastal ecosystems as sea level rises.

Steve told me that 2017 was “a banner year for geohazards and coastal disasters with extreme costs around the world. Lives were lost, structures demolished, and coastal ecosystems destroyed.”

Steve would like to see TCS members collectively continue to advocate and teach ways for sustainable coastal development and post-storm recovery with integrated science, economics, and public policy.

But the top eight members to renew are not just domestically-focused.

Kem Lowry, Emeritus Professor of Urban and Regional Planning with the University of Hawaii, has had the good fortune to be involved in coastal planning and research activities in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines for about forty years. His primary focus now is climate change adaptation. The last three years Kem has worked with colleagues throughout the Asia-Pacific region delivering week-long training courses on urban climate change adaptation.

In the U.S. Kem is developing a coastal retreat strategy for Hawaii with a team. He told me that in these and other areas of work he has been informed and inspired by the work of colleagues in TCS.

Another climate adaptation specialist in the top eight is Lisa Graichen, Climate Adaptation Program Coordinator for UNH Cooperative Extension and New Hampshire Sea Grant.

Lisa Graichen, Climate Adaptation Program Coordinator for UNH Cooperative Extension and New Hampshire Sea Grant

When asked why she eagerly renewed she said, “TCS has given me the opportunity to connect with coastal management professionals around the country and hone my communications skills by participating in the Communications Subcommittee”.

Personally, I have been very impressed by Lisa’s well-researched articles and interviews. Her writing is engaging for non-scientists and read and shared widely by members and non-members alike. Lisa has astutely used her volunteer time with TCS to strategically grow professionally and she is a great model for all our members hoping to do the same.

Lisa is hoping 2018 will be a year that “we can learn from last year’s incredibly impactful hurricane season and make progress in our preparedness and response”. She thinks “we can elevate the climate conversation so that rebuilding decisions are smart, forward-thinking, and equitable.”

Tom Bigford, Past TCS President and retired from NOAA and the American Fisheries Society.

With his eye always on the professional development of TCS members, Tom Bigford, Past TCS President and retired from NOAA and the American Fisheries Society, hopes TCS can increase member participation in 2018 so our society can continue and even expand efforts to mentor the next generation of coastal professionals.

Writing earnestly, Tom revealed, “TCS provided just that type of assistance when I transitioned from grad school to professional life. I started in the natural sciences (I was a crab ecologist!) so TCS offered the extension I needed as I sought a more interdisciplinary career. TCS is the sole reason I had a very rewarding 43-year career. Now in retirement I plan to remain involved any way I can.”

Ellen Gordon, a freelance writer and editor (mostly retired), has been a TCS member since her graduate school days when she found the Society a great help “meeting all sorts of folks already in coastal careers”.

She promptly renewed her TCS membership because she values the connections made, and wants to help support the Society’s continued work fostering dialogue and communications in the coastal area. Ellen was the last editor of the TCS Bulletin (now the TCS Blog) and is excited by the advances in social media TCS has made. “Really love those Twitter posts!”, she exclaimed.

A treasure trove of knowledge and experience is available to all TCS members—Charter members who created TCS in the 1970s. Don Davis stressed this to me in that he has found we learn through reading, experience (including in laboratories), and talking to people. The talking to people being most critical.

While Don believes that our job listings “in itself is worth the price of being a member,” the biggest value TCS brings is being a bridge for those seasoned coastal professionals and those starting out.

In talking to Don, a geologist and cultural geographer, I could find he has a big heart for the people his work serves. Coastal peoples. Professionals and coastal communities. I could tell his desire for better connections among coastal peoples is a decades long desire.

Don has close ties with Acadians, a U.S. cultural group that is perhaps the last generation not to live more than 30 miles from home. Don implores us to include the cultures of coastal peoples in addressing planned retreat. “Resiliency is tattooed to their soul.”

Don wraps up the sentiments of the eight members to renew for 2018 best: “TCS weaves the tapestry of all these things together. I don’t know your age or background. Do I like TCS? Yes ma’am! I do.”

I am renewing this month because I would hate to lose touch with these coastal champions, and with you. Keep the U.S. coastal network strong. Please renew your membership or join today.

September 13, 2017August 8, 2018

TCS VISITS WITH A LEGEND: AN INTERVIEW WITH BARBARA FEGAN

Editor’s Note: This article is a reprint from the TCS Bulletin in 2000 (Volume 22(2)) in celebration of the 33rd anniversary of Coastweeks.

by Thomas E. Bigford, Policy co-Director, American Fisheries Society

The BULLETIN thanks Ms. Fegan for sharing her memories and her inspiration.

As I contemplated the meaning of Coastweeks 2000 this past summer, I found myself thinking often of how one person’s idea coalesced into an event, then a national and international celebration, and now a tradition. Thoughts of those formative days of Coastweeks invariably reminded me of the enthusiastic leadership provided by a single visionary — Barbara Fegan. I caught up with her this past September as she was enjoying retirement in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, the Cape Cod community where she perfected her coastal advocacy roots. Although she is approaching her 80th birthday (“not till next year! “) and she “officially” retired by choice from public life in 1994, we can rest assured that Ms. Fegan remains a visionary. To me, she’s also a treasured friend. This interview offers glimpses of how Coastweeks evolved and where we might be headed in the coming decades, all foretold by a true coastal hero.

How did the concept of Coastweeks begin?

My idea can be traced back to 1980. That year had been designated as Year of the Coast, and there was great enthusiasm for coastal issues, I had great hope that the designation would inspire action, but the energy level wasn’t there yet. The next year brought another round of success when the Coastal Zone Management Act was reauthorized, but there was still no structure for real coastal activism. The Coastal Society’s 1982 conference in Baltimore on “Communicating Coastal Information” rejuvenated my creative juices. The Year of the Coast was fresh in our minds, the CZMA had been strengthened, and we received great news that President Reagan had just signed a law to protect coastal barriers. I was thinking about how to increase public participation along the lines of Earth Day rather than some corporate model. I wanted to be outside organiza~ tional structures, not constrained by them. With society racing faster and faster to get to the coast, I was convinced we should capture some of that energy in protecting our beaches and shores. The idea of a coastal festival intrigued me. Friends in more than 250 chapters of the League of Women Voters and Shirley Taylor with the Sierra Club in Florida offered the support network needed to launch the idea. I shared my concept as a comment from the floor at TCS8 and hoped the idea would grow.

Can you share some memories about that first Coastweek Celebration?

I remember the date – October 12, 1982. I was flying home from TCS8 with Rich Delaney, the new director of the Massachusetts coastal zone program. We talked about the Coastweek idea and what to do next. He was planning a fall conference and invited me so Coastweek could be part of the discussion. Rich also got Governor King to proclaim the first Coastweek that fall in Massachusetts. We were off and running! I operated Coastweek simply, with only volunteers. Those of us involved in the early years met all sorts of folks, some outright crooks who thought I was a coastal heiress and wanted some of my millions but many more who shared my hopes for a better coast. Those first few months confirmed that we had an idea that could work!

What were your early ideas for Coastweeks?

Mostly, I saw a volunteer organization. If we had a paid staff we would have been beholden to some organization. I wanted no dues, no reports, and very little structure. I organized things for the first few years but kept it very simple. I only communicated by mail, and never sent second mailings or reminders. No phone calls either-that would have taken too much time. That approach, coupled with new and old friends in the League of Women Voters, Sierra Club, and The Coastal Society started a national movement. I also wanted to work with other related efforts. Judy Nielsen with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife had attended a marine debris conference in Hawaii and adopted the idea of a citizen-based, coastal beach clean-up to collect information on marine litter. There were other events around the country in late September and early October. That’s when the seven day Coastweek evolved into the longer event spanning two months that came to be known as Coastweeks with an “s”.

Do you have any fondest memories from those early years?

Certainly! There were plenty of characters, and lots of crazy ideas. But I loved it since every idea generated interest in the coast. I remember ideological people in Toledo who were driven to clean up the Ohio coast, they wanted to reverse the pollution that led to the Cuyahoga River fire and other environmental disasters. There were the ever-hopeful teachers who organized camping excursions for Texas schoolchildren. And there was the University of Colorado Glee Club that hosted a Sea Chanty party. It was landlocked events like that one in Colorado that inspired a tongue-in-cheek campaign to “Save our Kansas Coast.” Everyone was getting involved.

After a year or two, Coastweeks was here to stay! It really helped over the years to have some great individuals deeply involved. Linda Maraniss was one gem! She and her colleagues at the Center for Marine Conservation helped with Coastweeks administration, Coastsweep beach clean .. up data collection, and so much more.

How has the concept evolved?

I’ve seen some major changes, but the basic celebration continues with the same volunteer spirit we envisioned. Annual Coastweeks calendars are still dominated by small events built around education and sharing. However, the overall Coastweeks structure has changed. During the past four years or so, agencies and organizations have tried to capture the spirit. Many volunteer citizens have been replaced by people driven by their professions to exploit or protect the coast. It isn’t the same. It’s a different language, built around the need to produce results rather than simply participate. Coastweeks shouldn’t be measured in jobs and political favors, but it’s happening. I hope the new Coastweeks doesn’t become another government program or corporate marketing campaign.

What about the coasts themselves? Do you think Coastweeks has changed society, or that the issues have changed since the early 1980s?

There’s definitely a change underway. I see a shift from massive programs to local efforts. People are getting involved at the neighborhood level through local groups. I’m delighted by the trend. Whenever you can get a group of like-minded people, supported by a skeletal organization and deep convictions, you can make progress. But you need people who are fulltime participants, People can’t buy a voice; they need to enroll and engage. That’s a real issue in coastal communities where many taxpayers are seasonal residents with their own agendas. I’m hopeful that self-conceived, self-directed efforts are increasing.

Where do you think we’re headed in the next decade or so?

Coastal issues are like the tides. Issues come and go, sometimes leaving debris behind that prompts action but usually leaving nothing noticeable. There are also tides in public and political leanings. I don’t know where we’re heading because much of what I see is the same as a few years ago, but years of small changes add up over the decades to make a real difference. Sometimes it takes even longer to recognize those changes. I think that’s happening along our coasts, There are changes in social structures that will affect the mix of people and expectations for coastal management. There are also changes on the science side. The more we know, the more we realize we don’t know. We continue to make errors, only now we live longer and must face our errors personally. Some impacts are translated inland, such as storm-related damages that now affect landlocked counties and peoples. I trust the hidden genius in each of us will sense changes and prepare accordingly. I recognized a wave back in 1982 and jumped on. There are other waves now that are waiting for us. Good people will respond. If we praise their efforts they will remain engaged as citizens, small groups, and local networks. That’s how Coastweeks began and how future ideas will succeed. We just need to keep the energy level focused in the neighborhoods, supported by corporations and large groups rather than replaced by them. These changes are organic. They won’t kill us. They’ll be more successful if we focus on sources rather than fixes. Along the coast, let’s search for the reasons why something doesn’t work rather than heap solutions on a broken system. Nonpoint source pollution is one opportunity awaiting citizen action.

Thanks for sharing your philosophy on coastal activism. Do you have any closing comments?

Just one comment, one that is embedded in much of what I read and how I have shaped my actions. We need to read more history. We need to learn what has happened in the world and why. Those insights will help us to recognize behaviors, cultures, and differences. It will also help us understand where we are headed. I’m reading R.W. Davies’ enlightening book on European history. Sit down with a history book, a dictionary, and a map so you can understand our world. Then apply your new wisdom to the coast and we’ll be headed in the right direction.

Read this interview in its original form in the TCS Bulletin 2000 Volume 2(2).