{"657467":{"#nid":"657467","#data":{"type":"news","title":"With Recent Funding, Sea Level Sensor Project in Savannah Moves into New Phase","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe rising sea levels along Georgia\u2019s Savannah coast and an uptick in more severe storms during hurricane season are bellwethers to looming ecological challenges stemming from climate change.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOngoing research to study sea level rise led by Georgia Tech researchers, a coalition of universities, Savannah and Chatham County government leaders, and local community groups is creating what could be a national model for coastal regions across the country facing similar challenges.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELaunched in 2018 with a\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pingeorgia.org\/all_initiatives\/chatham-county\/\u0022\u003EGeorgia Smart Communities Challenge Grant\u003C\/a\u003E, the data collected from the sea level sensors is used to inform city and county planners and emergency responders on resource deployment following major weather events.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENow in its fourth year, the sea sensor project is now slated to receive $5 million from Congress. It is secured by U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, and U.S. Rep. Earl L. \u201cBuddy\u201d Carter to expand the network of sensors \u2014 currently 50 are deployed off Chatham County\u2019s coast \u2014 to blanket Georgia\u2019s 11-county coastal region.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWith this new funding, we are recognizing a new phase of our project which has evolved,\u201d said Kim Cobb, former director of Georgia Tech\u2019s\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/globalchange.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EGlobal Change Program\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;and a professor who studies climate, oceanography, and weather in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/eas.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECobb and Russell J. Clark, senior research scientist in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scs.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Computer Science\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;at Georgia Tech\u2019s College of Computing, co-lead the project. Allen Hyde, assistant professor in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hsoc.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of History and Sociology\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;in Georgia Tech\u2019s Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, leads a\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/innovate.gatech.edu\/news\/https-innovate-gatech-edu-news-georgia-tech-researchers-awarded-100k-in-civic-innovation-challenge-grants\/?utm_source=rss\u0026amp;utm_medium=rss\u0026amp;utm_campaign=https-innovate-gatech-edu-news-georgia-tech-researchers-awarded-100k-in-civic-innovation-challenge-grants\u0022\u003ENational Science Foundation project\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;focused on youth disaster resilience as part of the effort.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe funding will support expansion of building out more hyperlocal flood forecasting models, resilience planning tools for underserved communities, and further development of a K-12 education curriculum, paid internships, and other workforce development programs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech and its partners \u2014\u0026nbsp;which includes Savannah State University, the University of Georgia, and the University of South Carolina \u2014 is using these low-cost sensors to gain real-time data that over time will help inform the policies on infrastructure design and retrofitting, Cobb said. It will also further expand first responders and emergency planners\u2019 ability to forecast extreme rainfall and storm surge events on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood specific basis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt\u0027s going to translate into a saved lives and saved infrastructure,\u201d Cobb said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA National Model\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EHub researchers say the data being collected from the sensors and additional information gleaned from the sensor expansion has immediate applications in terms of flood disasters and hurricanes. Those findings over the long-term could also help frame the national dialogue and help inform policy as leaders in Washington shape it to tackle rising sea levels and climate change.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe award is part of a broader federal push, including a\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/briefing-room\/statements-releases\/2021\/08\/03\/fact-sheet-top-10-programs-in-the-bipartisan-infrastructure-investment-and-jobs-act-that-you-may-not-have-heard-about\/\u0022\u003E$12 billion funding package\u003C\/a\u003E, to help Georgia and other states along the Eastern Seaboard, as well as the West and Gulf coasts, develop resiliency and flooding plans and protocols to mitigate damage from future floods.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECobb said this new funding allows the Hub to further efforts in its research that further expands education and workforce development \u2014 particularly in underserved minority communities \u2014 as components of the broader strategy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cOur project started out anchored on the sensors and trying to provide real-time data to emergency planners and emergency response responders, but it\u2019s no longer just a small team of people who are interested in sensors or physical scientists, engineers and researchers on the science and technology side,\u201d she said, explaining the research team of some 30 people also includes policy and planning experts, along with community advocates.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u0027re trying to think about solutions in the context of history, geography, \u2014 the history of people, cultures, and economies down on the coast,\u201d Cobb said. \u201cThere\u2019s no waving a magic wand and making this all right, especially for the most vulnerable communities.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECommunity Voice\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EIn broad terms, the project touches flooding, infrastructure, property, and pollution. But this newer phase brings in aspects that go beyond scientific modeling of risk, said\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/sc.edu\/study\/colleges_schools\/artsandsciences\/geography\/our_people\/our_people_directory\/hardy_dean.php\u0022\u003EDean Hardy\u003C\/a\u003E, an assistant professor in the University of South Carolina\u2019s Department of Geography.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s what he calls the \u201chuman dimension\u201d phase.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere are disaster plans, there\u0027s resiliency plans, and there\u0027s community level thinking. But what we need is systemic change,\u201d said Hardy, whose research expertise is in geography and integrative conservation, which marries preservation and social and community goals with public policy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSo, what I hope partially comes out of this is not just a bunch of scientific publications or better scientific understanding of these issues, but capacity-building with community organizations that leads to the capacity for self-determination.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat acknowledgement is important to marginalized communities, said Dawud Shabaka, interim director of\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.theharambeehouse.net\/\u0022\u003EHarambee House\u003C\/a\u003E, in Savannah. The organization, which is involved in the sensor project, promotes and advocates for civic engagement from the coastal city\u2019s Black residents and youth.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EShabaka noted that the engagement component, particularly local high school and middle school students working on the sensors and coding, has allowed the participants to see themselves not only as budding scientists, but as future community leaders.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWhen you\u2019re dealing with or managing or mitigating an issue that\u2019s affecting society, it\u2019s got to involve research and dialogue with the community. This project is allowing us to recognize that the community themselves are the subject matter experts,\u201d said Shabaka. \u201cHaving the students involved at an early age, benefits society as a whole and lets them know that the work they\u2019re doing is having a much wider impact. This is the type of community engagement that needs to happen to make people feel like they\u2019re worthwhile.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe rising sea levels along Georgia\u0026rsquo;s Savannah coast and an uptick in more severe storms during hurricane season are bellwethers to looming ecological challenges stemming from climate change.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The rising sea levels along Georgia\u2019s Savannah coast and an uptick in more severe storms during hurricane season are bellwethers to looming ecological challenges stemming from climate change."}],"uid":"28137","created_gmt":"2022-04-20 17:21:08","changed_gmt":"2025-01-27 20:33:44","author":"P\u00e9ralte Paul","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2022-04-20T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2022-04-20T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"657468":{"id":"657468","type":"image","title":"Savannah Coast","body":null,"created":"1650475476","gmt_created":"2022-04-20 17:24:36","changed":"1650475476","gmt_changed":"2022-04-20 17:24:36","alt":"An aerial view of the Georgia Coast.","file":{"fid":"249187","name":"DJI_0001.MP4_.00_13_33_09.Still006.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0001.MP4_.00_13_33_09.Still006.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0001.MP4_.00_13_33_09.Still006.png","mime":"image\/png","size":3117051,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/DJI_0001.MP4_.00_13_33_09.Still006.png?itok=THH-vAVD"}},"657469":{"id":"657469","type":"image","title":"Sea Sensor Box","body":null,"created":"1650478709","gmt_created":"2022-04-20 18:18:29","changed":"1650478709","gmt_changed":"2022-04-20 18:18:29","alt":"A close-up view of the sensor being used to monitor sea levels off the Georgia Coast.","file":{"fid":"249189","name":"DJI_0085.MP4_.00_00_49_20.Still001.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0085.MP4_.00_00_49_20.Still001.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0085.MP4_.00_00_49_20.Still001.png","mime":"image\/png","size":3187445,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/DJI_0085.MP4_.00_00_49_20.Still001.png?itok=AO5U2Cze"}},"657498":{"id":"657498","type":"image","title":"Student Researcher","body":null,"created":"1650587112","gmt_created":"2022-04-22 00:25:12","changed":"1650587140","gmt_changed":"2022-04-22 00:25:40","alt":"Students from Savannah\u0027s Herschel V. Jenkins High School get hands-on experience in studying the sea level sensors, data analysis, and interpreting the results.","file":{"fid":"249201","name":"DJI_0111.MP4_.00_02_28_00.Still003.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0111.MP4_.00_02_28_00.Still003.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DJI_0111.MP4_.00_02_28_00.Still003.png","mime":"image\/png","size":3099988,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/DJI_0111.MP4_.00_02_28_00.Still003.png?itok=W2LEvmU2"}}},"media_ids":["657468","657469","657498"],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"}],"categories":[{"id":"139","name":"Business"},{"id":"142","name":"City Planning, Transportation, and Urban Growth"},{"id":"154","name":"Environment"},{"id":"151","name":"Policy, Social Sciences, and Liberal Arts"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"106361","name":"Business and Economic Development"},{"id":"71911","name":"Earth and Environment"},{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EP\u00e9ralte C. Paul\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr\u003Eperalte.paul@comm.gatech.edu\u003Cbr\u003E404.316.1210\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["peralte.paul@comm.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}