The National Sea Grant College Program today announced recent investments through two complementary initiatives aimed at improving resilience with coastal communities. Through a joint competition with the U.S. Coastal Research Program (USCRP), ten new projects were selected for a total of $3.9 million in funding to translate research into application for communities.
Project activities span California, Georgia, Hawai’i, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Wisconsin, South Carolina and Texas, and activities will take place either over two years (Tier 1) or over four years (Tier 2). All projects have been recommended for funding and await final approval before award disbursement. These collaborative projects will build on Sea Grant’s continuing research and extension work in communities. The full list of USCRP-Sea Grant projects and descriptions is available here.
New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium has been awarded $150,000 (Tier 1) of federal funding to enhance community resilience through knowledge co-production on sediment transport and bypassing around natural tidal inlets. The goal of this project is to gain a better understanding of how hydrodynamic processes influence morphologic evolution at natural inlets and adjacent shorelines. The project will use local community knowledge and commonly used oceanographic analytic methods at Little Egg Inlet and Brigantine Inlet, which are natural, unstructured inlets in New Jersey, to help analyze current and sediment flow and inform interested parties of the changes in different scenarios. To gain community participation and knowledge co-production, the project team will organize listening sessions that aim to include a variety of interested parties to learn about the publics’ perspectives on shore protection activities, and human use and ecological species use at natural inlets, affiliated shoals, and adjacent shorelines. The project team will report on the effectiveness of student hands-on learning together with the coastal communities’ local knowledge in understanding currents and sediment transport around natural inlets.
“Through this partnership with the U.S. Coastal Research Program, Sea Grant is able to effectively leverage its nationwide network to help coastal and Great Lakes communities tackle some of the most pressing issues that they face now and in the future,” said Jonathan Pennock, director of NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program. “The congressional appropriations dedicated to addressing resilience challenges through both of these complementary efforts will enhance engagement and adaptation planning and implementation for infrastructure, society, and human and ecosystem health.”
The projects selected through the USCRP-Sea Grant competition will increase the capacity of coastal communities across the U.S. to withstand and quickly recover from a diverse range of local challenges. This includes current and future flood risks posed by sea level rise and extreme storms. Projects will explore flooding impacts through the lenses of community socioeconomic factors, natural resource and infrastructure management, and shoreline adaptations. Additionally, projects will address coastal safety related to rip currents and drowning, and access to clean water.
New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium (NJSGC), the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Howard laboratory is excited to release two new funding opportunities.The NEFSC Howard Laboratory and NJSGC are partners in both projects. The NOAA Office of Aquaculture is the third partner on the aquaculture project. The funding for the coastal health opportunity came to NJSGC through Representative Frank Pallone Jr.’s efforts. Both opportunities are intended to build more local expertise. Both competitions are especially encouraging teams that include faculty and/or students from communities historically under-served in marine and environmental sciences.
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics is designed to help Sea Grant fulfill its broad educational responsibilities and to strengthen the collaboration between Sea Grant and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Since 1990, Sea Grant and NMFS have partnered to train students through this joint fellowship program in two specialized areas: population and ecosystem dynamics as well as marine resource economics. Population and ecosystem dynamics involve the study of fish populations and marine ecosystems to better assess fishery stock conditions and dynamics. The NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics places Ph.D. students in research-based fellowships that provide support for up to three years. The program is designed to fulfill workforce development needs identified by the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and since 1999, has provided opportunities for 159 Ph.D. students.
The goals of the NOAA Fisheries/Sea Grant Fellowship Program are:
To encourage qualified applicants to pursue careers in either population and ecosystem dynamics and stock assessment or in marine resource economics
To increase available expertise related to these fields
To foster closer relationships between academic scientists and NOAA Fisheries
To provide real-world experience to graduate students and accelerate their career development.
Applications from eligible PhD students are due to NJSGC by 5PM on January 25, 2023. Interested candidates should contactDr. Peter Rowe, Executive Director NJSGC for more details. Please share this opportunity to interested PhD students.
The NOAA Office of Coastal Management (OCM) offers the Coastal Management and Digital Coast Fellowship Program. This on-the-job education and training in coastal resource management and policy is offered to postgraduate students and provides assistance to state coastal zone management agencies and NOAA partners.
For the 2023 fellowship, applicants must be U.S. citizens who will complete a master’s or other advanced degree at an accredited U.S. university between August 1, 2021, and July 31, 2023. A broad range of degrees are applicable to the fellowship because the projects are varied among the host organizations. This two-year opportunity offers a competitive salary, medical benefits, and travel and relocation expense reimbursement. More eligibility requirements, descriptions of the projects, and guidance on how to apply can be found at coast.noaa.gov/fellowship (or view this flyer for more information).
Application for the 2023 Coastal Management and Digital Coast Fellowship Program must be submitted to the Sea Grant office in the state where the student is receiving their degree by Friday, January 27, 2023 5pm local time. New Jersey students are encouraged to contact Dr. Peter Rowe at NJSGC with any questions or concerns.
The application period for the 2024 Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship is now open. The fellowship provides a one-year, paid experience for highly qualified early career professionals to work on issues related to coastal, marine and Great Lakes science and policy in offices within the executive or legislative branch of government in Washington, D.C.
Graduate students interested in marine, coastal, and Great Lakes science and policy should explore the information about the fellowship as soon as possible and talk to New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium at least one month prior to the February 16, 2023 deadline.
To be eligible for the 2024 fellowship (which lasts February 1, 2024 through January 31, 2025),
A student must be enrolled towards a degree in a graduate program at any point between the onset of the 2022 Fall Term (quarter, trimester, semester, etc.) and February 16, 2023;
The student’s graduate degree program must be through an accredited institution of higher education in the United States or U.S. Territories;
Students are eligible regardless of nationality; domestic and international students at accredited U.S. institutions may apply; and
Applicants must have an interest in ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources and in the national policy decisions affecting those resources.
Please share this opportunity with colleagues, friends and potential applicants!
In 2021-2022, contributions from important donors like you allowed us to:
Continue funding ocean, climate, and social science research to further promote sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, enhance healthy coastal ecosystems, and create a environmental literate workforce throughout the Garden State.
Provided nearly 20,000 schoolchildren from over 30 different legislative districts the opportunity to experience unique hands-on experiential learning through our robust education programs.
Disperse nearly 65,000 NJ Fish and Wildlife marine recreational fishing regulation cards and posters to over 260 marinas throughout the State, from over 24 different legislative districts.
Influenced more than 150 marinas to have operating pumpout stations (including nine pumpout boats) thanks to NJSGC’s involvement with the New Jersey Clean Vessel Act Program.
We’re looking forward to the bright future ahead of the Consortium as we move forward into our 54th year. In 2022 NJSGC not only continued, but also created several new outstanding programs and projects, including:
Piloting a novel Aquaculture Student Apprenticeship Program to provide students with an understanding of shellfish aquaculture to create a foundation for a career in the emerging field of shellfish farming.
Created a new feature section in the COASTodian Newsletter called “Research Spotlight” focusing on NJSGC’s groundbreaking and innovative coastal, ocean, and climate research.
Hosted a Professional Development Workshop intended for elementary school teachers looking to build confidence in teaching climate science in their classrooms.
And much more to come in 2023!
With your support we can continue to work hard to promote the wise use of New Jersey’s marine and coastal resources through research, education, and outreach. The New Year is just around the corner. Can we count on you to support our mission to steward New Jersey’s marine and coastal environment? To make a year-end, tax-deductible contribution to NJSGC for 2022, please click HERE or kindly address your contribution to:
Deborah Meehan Quinn
New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium
22 Magruder Road
Fort Hancock, NJ 07732
Bryan Fluech working with students on a shrimp boat during the McIntosh County Academy Commercial Fishing Class from Georgia Sea Grant.
Sea Grant announces a funding opportunity to develop and execute local, regional, and national programs, workshops, and services to enable fishermen to enter career paths, in support of the Young Fishermen’s Development Act and other initiatives.
The National Sea Grant Office anticipates between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 of federal funds will be available to support approximately 2-5 awards, and awards will require 25% non-federal match. To be eligible to receive a grant under this program a recipient shall be a collaborative State, Tribal, local, or regionally based network or partnership of public or private entities, which may include— (A) a Sea Grant Institution; (B) a Federal or State agency or a Tribal organization; (C) a community-based nongovernmental organization; (D) fishermen’s cooperatives or associations; (E) an institution of higher education (including an institution awarding an associate’s degree), or a foundation maintained by an institution of higher education; or (F) any other appropriate entity.
Projects may benefit from engaging with the planning frameworks developed by Sea Grant programs in FY21-23. More information can be found here.
Letters of intent are required in order to be eligible to submit a full proposal and are due December 1, 2022.
Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute Research Scientist, Kevin Stuart, harvests juvenile yellowtail from a production tank (photo credit Mark Drawbridge, HSWRI).
NOAA Sea Grant announced approximately $14 million in federal funding across four strategic areas for improving U.S. aquaculture. The competitively selected projects will advance early stage propagation strategies for various aquaculture species, marine finfish juvenile production technologies, aquaculture collaboratives and establishment of an aquaculture information exchange.
“These investments demonstrate Sea Grant’s commitment to sustainably growing U.S. aquaculture throughout coastal and Great Lakes communities,” said Jonathan Pennock, director of NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program. “The funded projects, which address a variety of challenges, will ensure that growth of the aquaculture sector will be informed by the latest science and community needs.”
Aquaculture production provides great potential for increasing the economic resilience and nutritional security of communities across the country. All of the above investments are consistent with Sea Grant’s focus area of Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture (SFA) and the Sea Grant Network’s 10-year Aquaculture Vision, both of which support NOAA and Department of Commerce aquaculture goals. To learn more about Sea Grant’s work in sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, click here.
It may be fall, but read all about our work from over the summer in our Summer 2022 ‘COASTodian’ newsletter! Stay up to date on what we’ve been up to during this season! New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium’s ‘COASTodian’ newsletter (Summer 2022) is now available online here or by scanning the code below.
Highlights include:
Building Aquaculture Career Interest and Competencies Through Student Engagement in a Pilot Apprenticeship
New Jersey’s Picks for Favorite Beaches Announced in Ocean City
The New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium Held the Annual Jersey Shore Photo Contest Once Again!
Alexandra Swanson is Sea Grant’s 2023 Knauss Finalist