ECU Outer Banks campus leads research with statewide impacts

By Abbey Slattery, WRAL Digital Solutions

This article was written for our sponsor, East Carolina University.

Spanning 213 acres of marshes, wetlands and estuarine ecosystems, East Carolina University’s Outer Banks Campus is a researcher’s dream come true.

Home to the Coastal Studies Institute — or CSI, which is spearheaded by ECU — the Outer Banks Campus brings researchers and instructors from ECU, North Carolina State University, Elizabeth City State University and the University of North Carolina campuses in Chapel Hill and Wilmington together to research coastal topics that impact the region, the state and the country as a whole.

By bringing so many institutions together, CSI promotes a unique method of research.

“Here at the coast, we are extremely interdisciplinary — we understand that you can't study the coast without understanding the people and policy, and incorporating that into the research. A lot of the work that's done here isn't just focused on the physical environments or biology — it really is bringing people, the economy and the policy into the equation when we start studying the environment,” said Reide Corbett, Ph.D., the executive director of CSI and dean of Integrated Coastal Programs at ECU. “It really is the interaction between the environment and people that makes the coast unique and brings some of the challenges to heart. When you look at the researchers that are here, we have anything from a traditional engineer to an anthropologist to a human geographer to a marine geochemist. We bring all of these different disciplines together and focus on how we can impact our coast.”

Since so many disciplines are present on the coast, the technology used for research greatly varies, from instruments that measure waves and water quality to aerial satellites that map the extent of mangrove decline.

For undergraduates and graduate students, there are plenty of opportunities to contribute to the research at CSI. In the spring, ECU students have the chance to spend an entire semester helping out with coastal research.

That emphasis on interdisciplinary research is consistent within academics at CSI, as well.

“Students come here and take a full load of courses — we offer around five classes in anything from traditional oceanography class to anthropology to art,” said Corbett. “For us, it’s all about being able to come to the coast and experience multiple disciplines. It's not just for biology majors — it's for anybody interested in the coast — and we try to provide a curriculum that represents that.”

Programs at the Outer Banks Campus also give students the opportunity to complete an internship in the community or to work directly with faculty on some of their ongoing research. In fact, Corbett even had a student working with him this past spring on beach nourishment, the process of adding sand or another sediment to replace eroded sections of shoreline.

“The student working with me was involved in historic turtle data in an area where some nourishment had been done. She had the chance to go out in the field with me and collect data in preparation for a nourishment that was taking place in a nearby town. This was a freshman who was able to automatically get involved in real-world problems and real-world research that we are undertaking here at the Coastal Studies Institute,” said Corbett. “There are all sorts of opportunities for students at the undergraduate level to come out, take courses and get involved in the community, whether it's through an internship or doing research with faculty.”

The Waves to Water competition is perhaps the culmination of CSI’s emphasis on using interdisciplinary research to make a community impact — and getting students involved, as well. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the competition promotes the advancement of ocean and renewable energy technologies.

The full competition took place over two years with over 50 teams, all culminating in the final event hosted in April. The four remaining teams deployed devices they developed from Jennette's Pier in Nags Head and put them in a real-world scenario. They were required to use only energy harnessed from the waves to convert salt water into drinking water.

In the end, around $3.3 million was given away in prizes, courtesy of the Department of Energy.

“It was a pretty remarkable experience for us, as well as for these competitors. They use it as an incentive to really push the envelope of innovation and get engineers and scientists thinking about how we can accomplish the next big thing,” said Corbett. “For areas along the coast that maybe don't have a freshwater resource, this device could be deployed to provide that source. When we have a major storm and it cuts off our water supply, this would provide fresh water to a community. By developing these different prizes, the competition helps us take the next steps toward innovation.”

The winner of the competition, the Oneka Snowflake, took home $500,000.

By providing a home for this type of groundbreaking research, ECU is generating a new appreciation for what can be accomplished on the coast of North Carolina.

“We recognize the significance of the coast, and we're making more people aware by developing the faculty and the student resources out here on the coast to engage with some of the changes that are taking place,” said Corbett. “We recognize that this is an important area for the state of North Carolina, and we want to be here to support the East — that’s what ECU’s mission is all about. We can’t support it if we aren’t here, and this work is helping us understand the changes so that we can be a part of the solutions.”

This article was written for our sponsor, East Carolina University.