Summary

This spring, students and researchers from around the country participated in the Hub’s “Protect Our Coasts” Video Competition. The event, which took place over the course of three months, was designed to help early-career researchers cultivate their storytelling abilities to communicate their coastal protection work in a way that’s accessible, captivating, and poignant.

Dr. Jingya Wang, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Delaware (UD), came up with the idea of a coastal protection-themed video competition when she was applying for the United Nations’ Ocean Decade program. This award is granted to women who contribute to NSF Coastlines and People (CoPe) projects, such as CHEER, that focus on coastline and community research.

She is the second member of the Hub to be awarded this honor. A.R. Siders, a 2023 Ocean Decade Champion, used the funds to create and host a nationwide climate-themed video game jam.

“Research shows that short videos—especially around three minutes—are a powerful way to engage audiences and convey messages effectively,” Wang said. “Storytelling is a key part of good science communication, and I wanted to help our participants see the potential there is when we invest not just in research, but in how we share it.”

While the premise of this competition addressed serious issues, Dr. Wang organized the event in the hope that it would offer a light way to do so and would inspire people to take action. Videos, Wang said, are a creative way for people to actively engage in protecting coasts and explore a topic they are passionate about.

Contestants were challenged, as teams or individuals, to produce a brief video that clearly and creatively explained a coastal protection-themed topic of interest or a research project. 

Postdoctoral researchers, PhD students, and anyone enrolled in a full-time undergraduate or graduate program at a college in the United States was eligible to enter. Participants representing several universities, including the University of Delaware, East Carolina University, and Stanford University, competed in the event. 

Though submissions were intended to be brief (two to three minutes), months of preparation went into organizing the competition. Dr. Wang was intentional about making sure that people would not be deterred by a lack of expertise or experience in video production. 

“We deliberately encouraged participation from people without prior experience because that’s where the impact is greatest,” Wang said. “This competition was never just about polished videos. It was about helping early-career researchers take steps toward communicating their science more confidently and effectively. That kind of growth has lasting value.”

Students had the opportunity to attend webinars over the course of the competition. The first workshop, which was led by two UD multimedia librarians, focused on digital storytelling and video production. The second webinar was provided by Stony Brook University’s Alan Alda Center and focused on science communication more broadly. 

These training opportunities were well-received by attendees and equipped them with basic editing and production skills to jumpstart their videos. They also provided space for participants to brainstorm ideas for their submissions. 

Submissions addressed a wide range of coastal issues, from mangrove restoration to sea-level rise. 

Sixto Taveras Lopez partnered with his labmate to give viewers a sneak peek of the research being done in the Coastal Change Lab at Stony Brook. Their award-winning submission, which focused on wetland responses to these threats and patterns of marsh migration, incorporated drone footage to give viewers a bird’s-eye view of the issue.

“We are both very interested in how salt marshes are responding to sea level rise, and we knew that drone imagery would perfectly capture it,” Taveras Lopez said. “Visiting the marsh was exciting because it was the first time we had gone out into the field this season.”

Other videos were inspired by personal experience. Julie Elliott, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of North Texas and native of the Lone Star State, grew up several hours from the nearest shoreline. She said that moving to Delaware, a coastal state, was an eye-opening experience.

“I quickly came to realize that the coast was more than just recreation and pleasure: it was livelihood,” Elliot said. “I hope my video can inspire folks, particularly those who, like me, have limited experience along the coast, to protect our shores and explore what it means for communities to adapt to impending climate inertia impacts.”

A panel of judges from various disciplines, including geography, climatology, and science communication, evaluated the videos. Submissions were scored based on their messaging and communication, video production quality, relevance to competition themes, and potential to inspire change.

Awards were presented to the top four videos:

• Protect Our Coasts: Adapting to a Changing Climate (Julie Elliott)
• Marshes in Motion: Response of Coastal Ecosystems to Sea Level Rise (Sixto Taveras Lopez and Nicholas Anderson)
• Protecting Our Coast: Real-Time Monitoring Along Delaware’s Shoreline (Alexandra Schueller)
• Amanda Stoltz is a Coastal Social Scientist! (Amanda Stoltz)

Judges also awarded honorable mentions:

• Eroding Bluffs in Lab: Simulating Bluff Recession With Waves
• Advancing Coastal Protection, One Wave at a Time
• Agent-Based Modeling to Integrate Decisions for Mangrove Restoration

All of these videos can be viewed on the 2025 Ocean Decade Video Competition Playlist on CHEER’s YouTube channel. They will also be posted throughout the summer on the Hub’s LinkedIn page.

The Hub’s Ocean Decade Video Competition is not the first of its kind and certainly won’t be the last. Dr. Wang, though, hopes that events like this one will spark long-term interest in some of the world’s most persistent problems.

“What moved me most was seeing participants—many with no prior communication experience—take risks, be creative, and produce something meaningful,” Wang said. “It reminded me that science doesn’t have to be polished to be powerful. I hope participants leave with the confidence that their voices matter—not just in science, but in shaping the future of coastal conservation.”