Sea Grant Tools Help Communities Become More Resilient

January 8, 2015

The National Sea Grant toolkit compiles tools that have been developed by the Sea Grant Network

Today Sea Grant launches the National Sea Grant Resilience Toolkit. The toolkit is a compilation of tools and resources that have been developed over the years by the Sea Grant Network to help local communities become more resilient.
As coastal populations continue to grow it becomes increasingly necessary for communities to become more resilient to a range of natural hazards, water quality challenges, severe weather, and the effects of climate change. Sea Grant programs are spread across diverse communities and specialize in developing tools that are tailored to local needs. This portal allows people to learn about tools from across the entire network giving users the opportunity to adapt tools for their own local needs. Each entry includes a description of the tools, a link for more information, and a point of contact.
“The Sea Grant Network has developed a variety of resiliency tools aimed to empower community leaders to make informed, science-based decisions.” said Dr. Leon Cammen, Sea Grant College Program Director. “Sea Grant agents work closely with coastal communities and they have a unique ability to identify specific community needs. These resources will help those communities take the initial steps in smart decision-making and planning for a better future. “

Some features of the Toolkit include:

Successful demonstration projects like that of Washington Sea Grant where they, in collaboration with USGS, are monitoring sediment supply of the Elwha Dam removal.
Nationally used self-assessment tools like the Coastal Community Resilience Index (CRI) and the Vulnerability, Consequences, and Adaptation Planning Scenarios (VCAPS) that help communities assess risks from climate change and identify ways to reduce vulnerabilities, involving the community and stakeholders in the process.
Tools designed for local needs like Wisconsin Sea Grant’s storm transposition tool, which is being applied in the Manitowoc River watershed demonstrates why communities should invest in building resilience to climate change.

The toolkit has over 100 tools and will be updated as more tools are created.
Sea Grant is a federal-private partnership of 33 programs based at top research universities in every coastal and Great Lakes state as well as Puerto Rico and Guam. Sea Grant leverages federal, academic, and industry partners to support communities impacted by coastal hazards. Sea Grant continues to invest in high-priority coastal resiliency research and engage communities through its integrated outreach program, bringing together the collective expertise of on-the-ground extension agents, educators and communicators to support the development of resilient coastal communities.

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