If you couldn’t make the Ocean Fun Days Event, head to oceanfundays.org to watch informational videos and access handouts of various fun activities.
Spring is almost over, but fear not… you can relive it by checking out our Spring 2022 ‘COASTodian’ newsletter. Read all about what we’ve been up to during this season! New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium’s ‘COASTodian’ newsletter (Spring 2022) is now available online here or by scanning the code below.
And much more!
Are you a K-6th grade educator interested in increasing your confidence in teaching students about climate change? Join New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium this summer to learn more about climate science and effective ways to teach climate change in this one-day workshop at New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium’s headquarters in Gateway National Recreation Area on Sandy Hook.
PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU / AFP via Getty Images
Discover ways to effectively communicate the science of climate change and its impacts, all while empowering and giving hope to elementary school students. Enhance your curriculum with new activities and learn how to frame discussions on this sometimes difficult topic. Don’t fret over, but learn how to incorporate New Jersey Student Learning Standards (NJSLS) for Climate Change Education into lessons you may already be teaching. Earn continuing education credits, too!
Learn to employ successful strategies to help students understand the complex subject of climate change, inspire their curiosity, and motivate them to work towards solutions for the climate-related environmental challenges that they may face in the future. All K-6th grade teachers are welcome to this workshop.
When: Wednesday, August 17, 2022 from 9:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m.
Where: New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium 22 Magruder Road Fort Hancock (Highlands), NJ 07732
Fee: $25 per person, includes lunch
To learn more please visit njseagrant.org. For questions about the workshop or registration contact dburich@njseagrant.org.
NJSGC’s Jersey Shore photo contest featuring all of our state’s beauty, has closed. Of the 78 photos entered, 28 finalists were selected. Thanks to all the amazing photographers who entered. Selecting the top 28 was not easy.
Now it’s time to vote for the 12 that will create our 2023 desktop calendars.
or copy https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/votephotocontest2022 and paste it into your browser
The sun is out, the shades are on, and the smell of sunscreen and BBQs is in the air…which can mean only one thing: It’s finally time to cast your vote for New Jersey’s favorite beach!
The fate of our beaches is in your hands. Choose your favorite local “hotspots” from a list of amazing beaches throughout the Jersey Shore’s four coastal counties – Atlantic, Cape May, Monmouth, and Ocean. New Jersey Sea Grant (NJSGC) will announce the winners around the July Fourth holiday. Click here to vote: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/favoritebeach2022!
An overall victor is still announced, with Ocean City remaining undefeated champ over the past several years. But will that impressive winning streak end in 2022? Asbury Park has definitely proved a fierce competitor over the past couple years… You decide! Read more from our friend, Nicole Murray from 94.3 “The Point.” She’s not biased about her favorite beach, whatsoever!
Debuting in 2008 as New Jersey’s “Top Ten Beaches,” the survey was initially designed to encourage friendly competition and camaraderie amongst popular Jersey Shore communities along the coast. Following Hurricane Sandy, the contest was rebranded “Favorite Beaches” to diversify results so that ALL areas of the Garden State’s gorgeous oceanfront are recognized, inspiring a refreshing sense of unity and support.
Be sure to share NJSGC’s highly-anticipated “Favorite Beaches” poll with family and friends, and stay tuned for the official results later this summer.
Connect with New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter for more updates. Thank you for your continued support!
Media Updates:
https://943thepoint.com/nj-sea-grant-consortium-2022-njs-best-beaches-contest/
https://patch.com/new-jersey/oceancity/vote-ocean-city-overall-nj-favorite-beach
The warm weather and sunshine was not the only thing New Jerseyans were excited about last weekend, as the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium (NJSGC), in partnership with New Jersey Natural Gas, hosted Ocean Fun Days. On May 21 and 22, children (and children at heart) flocked to Island Beach State Park and Gateway National Recreation Area at Sandy Hook Unit to learn about our ocean, environmental science, and energy conservation.
The 19th annual Ocean Fun Days was back in person after two years of virtual programming. Smiles were contagious during fun events like crab races, seining for marine life, the energy scavenger hunt, guided walking tours, and other enjoyable ways to learn about our coastal environment and ways to protect it. For those unable to attend in person, NJSGC created OceanFunDays.org complete with videos, handouts, activities, and other parent and teacher resources for kids.
NJSGC Executive Director Dr. Pete Rowe educates excited attendees about fiddler crabs.
Rosemary Higgins, College & Special Programs Coordinator at NJSGC teaches girl about seashell morphology.
NJSGC Director of Education Diana Burich (right) poses with participant to show off arms painted with seahorses and starfish.
As the days grow longer and sun shines brighter, New Jerseyans once again emerge from their annual winter slumbers to trade in their boots for flip flops and head to the coast. Leaving the dark cold days of winter behind, beachgoers look forward to another season of fun on the Jersey shore.
This summer is projected to be both hotter and wetter than usual due to weak La Niña conditions. This year’s State of the Shore Report will further explain and expand upon the causes of these conditions and more, but the bottom line is: pack an umbrella with your sunscreen and sunnies. Read more in this year’s State of the Shore.
NJSGC invites media and tourism representatives to learn more about the ever-changing conditions of our shoreline from a group of local scientists and environmental managers. Like past years we hosted the State of the Shore press event at Tim McLoone’s Supper Club located on the iconic Asbury Park boardwalk, with guest speakers including NJSGC Coastal Processes Specialist Dr. Jon Miller and NJDEP Commissioner Shawn LaTourette.
From left to right: NJSGC Coastal Processes Specialists Dr. Jon Miller, NJDEP Commissioner Shawn LaTourette, NJSGC Coastal Resilience Specialist Laura Kerr, and NJSGC Executive Director Dr. Peter Rowe.
Dr. Jon K. Miller (NJSGC/Stevens Institute of Technology) delivered a promising report at this year’s State of the Shore media event, announcing that NJ beaches are in prime condition heading into the Memorial Day Weekend (and more!). However, Dr. Miller warns of a busy hurricane season and the need for preparedness with climate change and sea level rise.
STATE OF THE SHORE (press coverage):
94.3 the Point: NJ beaches in good shape, but one storm could change everything
Asbury Park Press: Jersey Shore residents urged to prepare for active hurricane season this summer
ABC7: NJ officials declare Jersey Shore, lakeshores ready for summer
New Jersey 101.5: NJ beaches in good shape, but one storm could change everything
New Jersey boasts some of the most picturesque beaches along the East Coast. If you have a great shot that celebrates and embraces the natural elements of the Garden State’s beautiful coastline, submit the image to NJSGC’s revamped “Favorite Beaches of the Jersey Shore” photo contest! Ultimately, the top twelve photos will be used to create New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium’s annual desktop calendar for 2022.
About the Contest:
New Jersey Sea Grant’s graphic design team will select 24 photos from all entries received up until Wednesday, June 8th (5 pm EST). Those finalists will then be posted on the NJSGC website where visitors can vote for their favorite throughout the month leading up to the July Fourth holiday.
New Jersey’s “Favorite Beaches” Photo Contest Submission Guidelines:
(If your submission does not meet the following guidelines, it will not be considered)
Winners will be announced prior to the July Fourth holiday. These images will be used to create the 2023 NJSGC downloadable desktop calendar (https://njseagrant.org/desktop-calendars/), which will also feature useful coastal facts and information to help locals and visitors learn more about and appreciate the Jersey Shore.
To view last year’s winners, please click here.
Stevens Institute of Technology Computer Science Students (Left to Right) Patrick Juliano, Brian Wormser, Kyle Henderson, Eric Stazzone, Kai Engwall, and Michael Karsen.
In the past, Stevens had produced the highly-regarded peer-reviewed Stevens Flood Advisory System (SFAS), a desktop optimized visualization website that produces email notifications of forecasted flooding throughout the New York/New Jersey region. However, it was regarded as too complicated by some users. The new Coastal FloodHub simplifies the forecast data and warnings into a more accessible format designed for your phone making these forecasts accessible for quick decision making.
Coastal FloodHub applications don’t stop there. Users can use the app to send in their own reports of flooding to various organizations collecting community science flood data. Alternatively, it can simply be used for keeping individual records of flooding in particular areas.
NJSGC Coastal Resilience Specialist, Laura Kerr, recruited an advisory team from Stevens Institute of Technology and New York and New Jersey Sea Grants to advise the student on the app applications, while the students developed the product for the advisory team. Now that their project is complete, the Senior Design Team is currently working on getting the app pushed up to the Apple App and Google Play stores. Soon, volunteers from coastal communities will be needed to use the app and provide feedback for version 2.0.
May 21, 2022 at Island Beach State Park, Seaside Park
May 22, 2022 at New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium on Sandy Hook
Both locations 11AM – 3PM rain or shine
Free admission and free parking!
Enjoy hands-on marine and environmental programs and exhibits. There will be giveaways and plenty of excitement, plus fun ways to learn about our coastal environment and energy conservation for the whole family to enjoy.
Learn how to use a seine net to catch native fish, crabs and other marine creatures. Test your local coastal knowledge or become a sand sampler and search for natural treasures on a guided walking tour. Hear first hand from New Jersey scientists and researchers all about the inner-workings of the ocean and the coastline and how to protect them for generations to come.
Don’t miss out on these two days of FREE Family Fun!
Please visit NJSGC’s Ocean Fun Days homepage for more information!
GET SOCIAL by using the #OFD2022 or #OceanFunDays2022 hashtags!
Ocean Fun Days is returning this year as an in-person event. All attendees should follow all government guidelines regarding face coverings and social distancing and check with their own healthcare providers for advice if they have any concerns based on their own, or their child’s, medical condition.