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Faces of Resiliency
In a recent feature, the UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant highlighted the ways in which communities are bolstering their resiliency to severe weather events. This series featured the work of several IRIS affiliates, including Brian Bledsoe, UGA Athletic Association Professor & Director, UGA College of Engineering, Jessica Brown, Stormwater Specialist, UGA Marine Extension and Georgia…
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On Stream Warming and Food Chains: IRIS Undergraduates present at UGA CURO Symposium
Olivia Allen and Ally Whiteis, undergraduate students in the Odum School of Ecology (and working with doctoral students Nathan Tomczyk and Carolyn Cummins) presented their research results at the UGA CURO symposium on April 4th. Both students found that stream organisms and food resources changed due to streamwater warming. Their experiments ranged from field measurements…
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Learning from past projects: paper published on a new monitoring approach for improving natural infrastructure
As part of the Network for Engineering With Nature, and in collaboration with a team of researchers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineering With Nature Initiative, IRIS affiliates Dr. Charles Van Rees, Laura Naslund, Dr. Brock Woodson, Dr. Amy Rosemond and Dr. Seth Wenger published a new paper “A strategic monitoring approach for…
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IRIS Affiliates and Team win Research Awards
This past week, the University of Georgia’s Office of Research announced the winners of the 43rd annual Research Awards. Sponsored by the University of Georgia Research Foundation, the awards recognize UGA faculty, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students for excellence and innovation in research, scholarly creativity, technology commercialization and entrepreneurship. IRIS had several faculty members recognized,…
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Register now: NASEM Workshop on the Benefits, Applications, and Opportunities of Natural Infrastructure
A workshop on May 10-11, 2022 will explore the benefits, applications, and opportunities of natural infrastructure and its efficacy in areas such as natural hazard resilience, climate change adaptation, and sustainable, multi-purpose infrastructure. The event will be a public, hybrid (in-person and virtual) workshop to assist the committee to explore opportunities to link the benefits of…
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Towards principles and policy levers for advancing living shorelines: new article published in Journal of Environmental Management
Living shorelines provide an attractive alternative to traditional shoreline armoring, such as bulkheads and seawalls. They stabilize shorelines, reduce erosion, and decrease wave energy, as well as providing recreation opportunities for nearby communities. Before they can be adopted across the landscape, however, there are several policy barriers that must be adapted. IRIS affiliates Shana Jones…
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Research Update: Gauging Carbon Levels in Salt Marshes
Salt marshes store roughly 25% of the world’s carbon, despite only making up about 5% of the world’s surface. Beyond that, they are an important form of natural infrastructure, mitigating the impacts from storms and reducing flooding in nearby towns and cities. However, salt marshes face serious challenges due to development and sea level rise.…
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Dr. Marshall Shepherd wins 2022 Faculty Achievement Award for University of Georgia
Dr. J. Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor, recently won the 2022 Faculty Achievement Award for the University of Georgia. As the SEC puts it, “A leading international weather-climate expert, Dr. Shepherd is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the only…
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Precision conservation saves time, money–and species
A tiny, rainbow-finned fish lives in the swiftly flowing waters of Georgia’s Etowah River. Known as the Etowah darter (Etheostoma etowahae), it exists only in the Etowah River Basin, mainly inhabiting the mountain streams of North Georgia. The Etowah darter is only one example of the diverse array of freshwater fish, amphibians, crawfish and mussels…
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Stream Crossings in Georgia: A Handbook for Connectivity and Resilience
As you drive the winding roads of Georgia, it’s a common occurrence to sail over a culvert or bridge and get a brief glimpse of a stream burbling away into the overgrowth before you’re whisked on to new views. These intersections of infrastructure and nature are so commonplace that we hardly think about them. However,…
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Rethinking Riverine Flooding: Q&A with Matt Chambers
Matt Chambers is a PhD student working under IRIS Director Dr. Brian Bledsoe. His work modeling the impacts of levee setbacks on upstream and downstream communities highlights how natural infrastructure solutions can increase community resilience. In the past, engineers attempted to prevent rivers from flooding by placing tall walls on either side of them, called…
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Working with Tybee Island communities to build resilience: new interview with IRIS researcher Jill Gambill
IRIS research on Tybee Island was recently featured in Yale Climate Connections. Jill Gambill, of the University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, is working closely with communities on Tybee Island to develop solutions that come from the ground up. “In doing planning, local knowledge and local experiences are so critical,” Gambill said…
