09.30.2024

Paper alert! A new paper from our close ecologist collaborators is out in Scientific Reports as “Coastal dune management affects above and belowground biotic characteristics”. We found that dune management significantly impacted living and non-living belowground biomass and root structure within the top 150 cm of sediment and dune plant community composition. Importantly, we found linkages between vegetative cover, elevation, and belowground biomass, which may be used to rapidly estimate belowground biomass from surface measurements in the future. I plan to leverage these relationships in a numerical modeling framework for my next project. Read the full article here!

06.19.2024

Selected to be an invited speaker in the Coastal Biophysical Interactions: Hydrodynamics, Sedimentary Processes, Morphodynamics, and Coastal Resiliency session at AGU25. Can’t wait to share my new findings!

06.08.2024

Honored to be an invited speaker at the Virginia P.E.O. State Convention. With fellow VIMS graduate student and P.E.O Scholar Award recipient Shannon Smith, we tied our seemingly divergent research interests together into one cohesive presentation: “Research in coastal ecosystems: from fish habitats to sand dunes”.

05.22.2024

After over a year of monitoring, I have finally finished our beach nourishment project sampling! Stay tuned for more updates from this project at the Coastal Dynamics 2025 conference in Portugal next spring!

05.20.2024

Thrilled to co-host and lead a stakeholder engagement workshop “Dynamic Dunes: Scientific Advances for Improved Management” at the US ACE Field Research Facility in Duck, North Carolina. The workshop gathered state, local, and federal government officials, non-profits, and industry professionals together to discuss our recent advances in coastal dune science as well as contemporary issues in coastal management.

04.01.2024

Received notice that I was selected for the international P.E.O Scholars Award. This is a merit-based award that recognizes academic excellence and achievement by women in doctoral-level programs. I’m blown away by their generous support and forever grateful to the local Williamsburg chapter for nominating me!

02.03.2024

Paper alert! The first chapter of my Ph.D. is out in Geomorphology as “Differences in internal sedimentologic and biotic structure between natural, managed, and constructed coastal foredunes”. I found that internal dune structure is highly variable, suggesting that the common assumptions regarding dune development and composition are too simplistic and may be inappropriate models for dune management. Importantly, natural, managed, and constructed dunes significantly differ in terms of their composition and structure. This might help explain why some dunes erode during storms and others don’t, even if subjected to similar or the same wave impacts. I’m happy to report that this article is open access, so do check it out here!

01.31.2024

Paper alert! Selwyn’s paper “Exploring Ecological, Morphological, and Environmental Controls on Coastal Foredune Evolution at Annual Scales Using a Process-Based Model” is out in the journal Sustainability (check it out here!). This work resulted from her W&M Honors Senior Research, during which I was a formal mentor to her. This study highlights how coastal management actions like vegetation planting can be optimized to increase coastal resilience to contemporary and future hazards like sea-level rise and increased storminess. SO proud of Selwyn for all her hard work & seeing this through. Way to go!

12.12.2023

Days two and three of AGU were packed with great presentations during the Coastal Morphodynamics and Geomorphology session. I was lucky enough this year to be a co-convener for this legacy session, which gave me incredible access to all the presenters and their research!

12.11.2023

Kicking off the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Annual Meeting with my own presentation! I always enjoy the discussions and new ideas that spurn from conference presentations. Check out my abstract here!

12.06.2023

Participated in an engaging outreach event called “A Scientist Walks Into a Bar…” at the Virginia Beer Co. in Williamsburg, VA. I had fun presenting the science behind beach nourishment and explaining to brewery-goers why they should care—even if they don’t have a house on the beach (hello federal tax dollars!). I think I convinced more than a few of them. 🙂

10.20.2023

The Coastal Geology Lab is headed to Brazil for the first annual International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) Project 725 “Forecasting Coastal Change” meeting! IGCP 725 is a UNESCO-sponsored project that brings together scientists from coastal geology and numerical modeling to improve predictive capacity of numerical models to fore- and hind-cast coastal change. At this meeting I will be presenting my work during an oral presentation titled “The role of internal dune structure in moderating dune response to storm impacts”. Beyond scientific talks and collaborative discussions, we will also be taking field trips at diverse (and jaw-droppingly beautiful!) coastal systems.

06.26.2023

Passed my qualifying exam! Officially a Ph.D. Candidate at VIMS and one step closer to finishing my degree.

05.30.2023

The beach nourishment in Duck, North Carolina is complete! Over two kilometers of the beach were widened with sediment from an offshore borrow source to increase coastal resilience. This marks the start of my post-nourishment sampling! I will be monitoring beach and dune change for the next year, specifically looking to see how different dune vegetation communities influences dune growth post-nourishment.

04.14.2023

Flattered to be awarded the Best Student Paper Award at Coastal Sediments ’23. Big thanks to the conference organizers for considering my paper, and to all my co-authors for their endless help. Check out my paper here!

04.13.2023

Presented an oral presentation at Coastal Sediments ’23 entitled “Linking Internal Coastal Foredune Moisture Dynamics to Erosion Vulnerability”. We deployed 15 moisture sensors within a dune to quantify temporal and spatial variations in internal dune moisture over the course of a year.

04.12.2023

Congrats to W&M ugrad Selwyn Heminway for a fantastic job presenting her work at Coastal Sediments ’23! Selwyn simulated dune evolution for a range of future climate conditions (sea-level rise, increased storminess) and pre-storm beach and dune morphologies. Read her paper here!

04.11.2023

Learned a great deal while attending the AeoLiS short course at the Coastal Sediments ’23 Conference! I’m excited to use AeoLiS to model sediment transport & dune evolution for my dissertation project soon.

03.31.2023

Thank you to the William & Mary Geology Department for the opportunity to present my research linking internal coastal dune moisture dynamics to erosion vulnerability.

03.21.2023

Honored to represent VIMS at the United Nations Water Conference. Here, we spent the week engaging in discussions and debates on water-related topics such as surface water restoration, groundwater pollution, water accessibility, and environmental justice.

02.13.2023

Presented at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s Interdisciplinary Marine Science Seminar.