News
Latest News from CSI
Local Ecological Knowledge & Modeling Insights for Shrimp Abundance in the Pamlico Sound
As environmental changes occur in the ocean, so does overall fish behavior. Species and populations of marine organisms are constantly responding to changes in the ecosystem around them. In turn, this can affect species abundance, distribution, reproduction, and more,...
CoastLines Summer/ Fall 2025 Available Now
We are proud to announce the Summer/ Fall 2025 issue of the ECU Integrated Coastal Programs Newsletter, CoastLines. Stay up to date on the research, education, and outreach programs of ECU ICP and the Coastal Studies Institute.In This Issue Corbett’s CornerStudent...
Nov. 20 Science on the Sound, Coastal Changes As Seen By Satellites
Join us for the November 2025 installment of the “Science on the Sound” Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Learn the Science of Surf at next Science on the Sound, Oct. 16
Join us for the October 2025 installment of the “Science on the Sound” Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Curious Campers Enjoyed Coastal Courses in 2025
Over the summer, the Coastal Studies Institute welcomed over one hundred school-aged children through its doors for summer camps. Each day of the nine weeks of programming brought both learning and laughter in a fun and engaging environment. During the 2025 season,...
Wave Notes FroM Hurricane Erin, August 2025
Though Hurricane Erin has come and gone, data analysis from the storm is still ongoing, and results keep rolling in, just like the waves. While multiple entities are involved in assessing storm impacts and variables, the Coastal Studies Institute manages two Waverider...
Science on the Sound Season Launches Aug.14 with Hurricane Forum
Join us for the August 2025 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Collaborative Work in the Philippines Continues to Flourish
Five years have passed in the blink of an eye, yet in that span, many wonderful collaborations and partnerships have been built across the world’s oceans. Dr. David Lagomasino has collaborated with the Fish Right Program since 2019, and this Fall he made his fourth...
Mike O’Driscoll: Water Resources Extroidinaire
Dr. Mike O’Driscoll has a long history with East Carolina University. He first started as a geology instructor in 2004 and has since climbed the faculty ranks to become a Professor in the ECU Department of Coastal Studies. Though his main office is in Greenville, his...
Sam Farquhar Tackles Arctic Fisheries & Food Security in Ph.D. Research Project
Sam Farquhar began her Ph.D. journey amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. At the time, she had recently completed her master’s program in Marine and Environmental Affairs at the University of Washington in Seattle, followed by a nine-month fellowship in Madagascar....
June 19 Science on the Sound Features Outer Banks Visitors Bureau
Join us for the June 2025 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Semester Experience at the Coast Proves To Be Memorable Opportunity for Students
Makenzie Allen is a first-year ECU undergraduate student who recently participated in the Semester Experience at the Coast. The following is an account of her time spent on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. Throughout the spring semester of 2025, I have had the chance to...
Another Busy Year at the Outer Banks Field Site
Another Fall semester came and went, and with that another cohort of students from UNC- Chapel Hill wrapped up an exciting semester of courses, internships, and research. In the last quarter of 2024, twelve students from Chapel Hill and beyond traveled to the coast to...
CoastLines Spring 2025 Available Now
We are proud to announce the Spring 2025 issue of the ECU Integrated Coastal Programs Newsletter, CoastLines. Stay up to date on the research, education, and outreach programs of ECU ICP and the Coastal Studies Institute.In This Issue Corbett’s CornerStudent Section...
ECU, CSI faculty member appears in new environmental film
Dr. David Lagomasino, depicted in the film still above walking through a study site in the Florida Everglades, is stationed at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus, yet his research reaches around the world. Much of his work focuses on mangrove...
Performing Arts- Based Science on the Sound, May 8
Join us for the May 2025 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
2025 CSI Open House to be Held May 17
Join us at the ECU Outer Banks Campus during our 2025 Open House! Spend the afternoon of May 17th learning about coastal and marine science research and education programs at ECU and the Coastal Studies Institute.East Carolina University’s Integrated Coastal Programs...
Energized Youth Compete in CSI Student Challenge
On a recent Saturday in late March, over eighty 4th-12th graders and their mentors and guardians gathered at the Coastal Studies Institute (CSI) to compete in the annual North Carolina Renewable Energy Challenge. Sponsored by the KidWind Project, the NC Renewable...
See “The Cigarette Surfboard” at the Pioneer Theater on April 17
The Coastal Studies Institute (CSI), in partnership with the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, is hosting a film screening of the award-winning The Cigarette Surfboard at the historic Pioneer Theater in Manteo on April 17, 2025. The film screening is part of CSI’s ongoing...
March 20 Science on the Sound Features Greentails and Wind Energy
Join us for the March 2025 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
2025 CSI Summer Camp Registration Now Open!
Registration for 2025 CSI Summer Camps is now open. Don't wait to sign up as we may fill up quickly! Our summer camps focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) concepts and utilize hands-on experiences and exploration of the great outdoor spaces...
Dr. Sean Charles: A Man for the Swamps
The newest addition to the Department of Coastal Studies’ faculty is no stranger to the ECU Outer Banks Campus and the Coastal Studies Institute. In fact, before his recent promotion to Research Assistant Professor, Dr. Sean Charles had been a postdoctoral scholar in...
Next Science on the Sound Lecture RESCHEDULED to February 27
Join us for the February 2025 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
New Buoy at Jennette’s Pier Provides Info for All
Those recently visiting Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, NC may have noticed a tall, yellow buoy floating in place just off the pier. In late 2024, the Oceanography & Marine Hydrokinetic Energy Lab at CSI, in partnership with NOAA’s Ocean Systems Test &...
Happy Holidays from CSI and ICP!
From all of us at ECU Integrated Coastal Programs and the Coastal Studies Institute, we wish you a joyful holiday season filled with peace, warmth, and coastal inspiration.
Integrated Coastal Programs Announces 2024-2025 Scholarship Recipients
ECU Integrated Coastal Programs (ICP) is pleased to announce five student scholar awards for the 2024-2025 academic year. Elnaz Pezeshki received the Anja Sjostrom Memorial Scholarship in Coastal Studies, an award that was established in January 2022 after the...
Field Site Students To Present Capstone Research on Dec 12
Join us for the December 2024 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Buzzing Around the Everglades
How did Kinsey Blumenthal (left in top photo), an Integrated Coastal Sciences (ICS) Ph.D. student, end up studying blood-borne pathogens carried by mosquitos in the Florida Everglades? The story is not as straightforward as one might think. In short, it took years for...
Powering North Carolina’s Blue Economy
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently awarded $12 million to the Atlantic Marine Energy Center (AMEC) as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to advance AMEC’s development and testing of innovative wave, tidal, and ocean current technologies. AMEC is one...
Nov 21 Science on the Sound Covers Ocracoke Light Station Preservation
Join us for the November 2024 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Prevalence of Shrimp Black Gill Disease in the Estuary
Brown (Penaues aztecus) and white (Penaeus setiferus) shrimp make up approximately 25% of total commercial landings by weight in North Carolina. But with shrimp black gill disease creeping up the Southeast Atlantic coast, is it possible that number could change in the...
Coral in the Caribbean
Through her research and participation in the ECU Integrated Coastal Sciences Ph.D. program, one student isn’t just seeking to study something new. She’s also aiming to make her mark on the world and help people along the way. Alexandra Stevenson grew up in a military...
CoastLines Summer 2024 Available Now
We are proud to announce the Summer 2024 issue of the ECU Integrated Coastal Programs Newsletter, CoastLines. Stay up to date on the research, education, and outreach programs of ECU ICP and the Coastal Studies Institute.In This Issue Corbett’s CornerStudent Section...
Oct 24 Science on the Sound Features National Weather Service
Join us for the October 2024 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
CSI Faculty Receive NSF Grant for Renewable Ocean Energy Research
Remote and island communities, like the Outer Banks, do not always have access to resilient energy sources during severe weather or other coastal hazards that jeopardize traditional grid power. When disaster strikes, it may be quite some time before such communities...
Upcoming Science on the Sound Lecture, September 26
Join us for the September 2024 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
Summer Camp Recap
Another summer has come and gone, and while most academic institutions tend to quiet down for the season, the energy at the Coastal Studies Institute is often at its highest. In addition to the nine REU students and a handful of others participating in internships or...
REU Reflections
Coastal communities and coastlines around the world are increasingly facing challenges including extreme weather, sea level rise, and population growth. While people may not see eye-to-eye when it comes to the drivers of these changes, most will agree that coastlines...
Science on the Sound Series Resumes August 28 with Talk about Flood Insurance
Join us for the launch of the 2024-2025 Science on the Sound Lecture Series season on August 28 at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal...
NREL Team & HERO WEC Made Another OBX Visit in Spring 2024
Good waves aren’t just for surfers on the Outer Banks. They’re preferred by some engineers, too. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL’s) hydraulic and electric reverse osmosis (HERO) wave energy converter (WEC) was once again deployed in the shallow waters...
Exploring the Human Dimensions of Marine Renewable Energy
Dr. Linda D’Anna, now a research associate at the Coastal Studies Institute, was once a budding biologist; but while in graduate school, her interests took a turn toward the social science aspects of coastal issues. “I loved doing bio fieldwork, but I while I was...
Dr. Stu Hamilton: A Local Scientist with Global Projects
Imagine a research hub with a variety of ecosystems right outside the door. There are marshes, wetlands, beaches, and maritime forests. The surrounding bodies of water are warm or cold; salty, fresh, or brackish- a combination of the two. Talent abounds and the...
Internships Reimagined
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” It is a question most begin to hear at a relatively young age. For some, that answer is easy and hardly changes with age. Yet for others, the answer is uncertain and increasingly daunting as they approach milestones like high...
CSI Family Programs Welcome Multi-generational Groups
Family programs at the Coastal Studies Institute are back in full swing for 2024 and are inviting curious minds of all ages to participate. CSI Education and Outreach offers a variety of standards-based education programs for K-12 students throughout the school year,...
Semester Experience at the Coast: A Stepping Stone for Future Coastal Careers
The arrival of Spring on the Outer Banks each year brings a complete transformation to the area. Local towns seemingly come to life after a dull gray winter of seclusion. Likewise, the Spring semester on the ECU Outer Banks Campus offers rejuvenation and new...
CoastLines Spring 2024 Available Now
We are proud to announce the Spring 2024 issue of the ECU Integrated Coastal Programs Newsletter, CoastLines. Stay up to date on the research, education, and outreach programs of ECU ICP and the Coastal Studies Institute.In This Issue Corbett’s CornerStudent Section...
Science on the Sound Series Continues on May 23
Join us for the May 2024 installment of the "Science on the Sound" Lecture Series at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in...
NCROEP Hosts Annual Symposium
Based at the Coastal Studies Institute (CSI), the North Carolina Renewable Ocean Energy Program (NCROEP) advances inter-disciplinary marine energy solutions across UNC System partner colleges of engineering at NC State University, UNC Charlotte, and NC A&T...
See Film ‘INUNDATION DISTRICT’ on Earth Day at CSI
Join us for a special Earth Day screening of INUNDATION DISTRICT on April 22, 2024, on the ECU Outer Banks Campus. Directed by David Abel, the film explores how one city ignored climate threats, spending billions to build a new waterfront district- at sea level rise,...
Teams Turn Heads at ’24 NC Renewable Energy Challenge
Anyone present at the 2024 North Carolina Renewable Energy Challenge would have seen young minds spinning as fast as the turbines the students themselves had manufactured. On March 23, 2024, over one hundred students, mentors, parents, and volunteers gathered at the...
Based at the Coastal Studies Institute (CSI), the North Carolina Renewable Ocean Energy Program (NCROEP) advances inter-disciplinary marine energy solutions across UNC System partner colleges of engineering at NC State University, UNC Charlotte, and NC A&T University. Click on the links below for more information.
ECU's Integrated Coastal Programs (ECU ICP) is a leader in coastal and marine research, education, and engagement. ECU ICP includes the Coastal Studies Institute, ECU's Department of Coastal Studies, and ECU Diving and Water Safety.
The ECU Outer Banks campus is home to the Coastal Studies Institute.
