Onsite, Instructor-Led

The National Estuarine Research Reserves, a network of 29 coastal sites along U.S. Coasts and the Great Lakes, host a range of education, outreach, and training opportunities through their Coastal Training Programs. The overarching goal of these programs is to provide current science and skill-building opportunities for decision-makers in coastal communities. The Coastal Training Programs increase audience understanding of the environmental, social, economic, and policy consequences of human activities, and facilitates coordination among stakeholders to support evidence-based policies and actions.

Each Reserve’s program is different, and many sites host trainings related to resilience and climate change. Some sites have the flexibility to meet the needs of specific decision makers at specific times by organizing or developing custom trainings for local or regional decision makers. Reserves also frequently host the NOAA Digital Coast trainings.

To access training opportunities, select a reserve from the national map, View the Reserve page, and then go to the Reserve Website (under Important Links). Check the Reserve Website for Training, Education, and Outreach opportunities.

Many communities struggle with how to prepare for hazards. It can be difficult to talk about vulnerability to hazards, and it can be even more difficult to keep people engaged and motivated to take action. This training provides insights into how and why people respond to risk, and helps participants develop new skills to better connect with a variety of audiences. Understanding and connecting with an audience’s diverse values and concerns can lead to a higher level of community engagement and can help motivate action to reduce risk. You will learn how to recognize differing values, and identify how and why people perceive and respond to risks the way they do; apply social science and risk communication principles when faced with challenging questions; respond to difficult questions with more confidence; and develop an effective risk communication strategy that incorporates relevant and proven principles.

This course prepares coastal planners and managers for planning and implementing green or natural infrastructure projects to reduce coastal natural hazards in their communities. The course consists of two parts: a 45-minute, self-guided online module that covers foundational concepts prior to attending the in-person event; and an in-person, one-day event that allows participants to interact with their peers and local experts to develop a green infrastructure strategy. You will learn how to describe how green or natural infrastructure contributes to reducing the impacts of hazards and building resilience; analyze considerations for choosing and planning green or natural infrastructure projects, including hazard reduction benefits, co-benefits, design, maintenance, and cost; identify and assess approaches for successful implementation, including planning, funding, and engaging partners and stakeholders; and identify local green or natural infrastructure projects and connect with local experts who can provide additional information and guidance. This course offers six hours of certification maintenance credits through the American Institute of Certified Planners, as well as five core continuing education credits for certified floodplain managers through the Association of State Floodplain Managers.

This course provides tools to design and implement productive meetings. Participants will learn basic facilitation skills and techniques for dealing with disruptive behaviors. Class time is provided to practice using tools and skills to plan and facilitate meetings that accomplish objectives while minimizing conflict. Participants at every level are welcome, since the new skills will be useful even when attending, but not running, a meeting. You will learn how to facilitate meetings effectively, use appropriate process tools and techniques to reach the meeting objectives, and identify disruptive behaviors in group processes and practice strategies to deal with them.

Coastal communities increasingly realize the need for adaptation strategies, but many are unsure where to begin. Attend this two-day, instructor-led course to gain a thorough grounding and practical skills for incorporating adaptation strategies into planning processes. Time in class is provided to practice applying what you’ve learned, and opportunities for local collaboration and next steps are emphasized through discussion, participant activities, and local speakers and examples. The course is designed for planners, public works staff, floodplain managers, hazard mitigation planners, sustainability managers, emergency managers, community groups, members of civic organizations, and coastal resource managers. Participants are eligible for continuing education credits through the American Institute of Certified Planners and Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) professional certifications.

This is an active, hands-on training to help natural resources managers incorporate climate change considerations into their own real-world ecosystem management projects (not only forests). Participants are guided through the steps of the Adaptation Workbook to define their management objectives, identify relevant regional and local effects of climate change on forest ecosystems, identify challenges and opportunities for management, and develop actionable steps to adapt ecosystems to changing conditions. Participants are encouraged to access post-training support from the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science, and to share their stories online as “adaptation demonstrations” at www.forestadaptation.org.

This three-day residence training course provides advanced knowledge in climate modeling, downscaling, attribution of extreme weather and water events to climate, and approaches and tools for developing local climate studies.

This two-day instructor-led course offers a combination of lectures and hands-on exercises to give students a better understanding of coastal inundation issues and mapping methods using a geographic information system (GIS). This course has been designed to: understand the types of inundation; learn about products and terminology; access data; perform datum conversions; understand interpolation methods and create DEMS; explore water level data; and map inundation using GIS. In hands-on exercises, students connect to web map services, access elevation data, convert between vertical datums, create and manage digital elevation models, map inundation model output, develop inundation zones, and map sea level rise using modeled tidal surfaces.