Message from the Director: Rachel Davidson, PhD
Our team has been hard at work these last few months. In addition to publishing six journal articles since the start of the new year, several of our students successfully defended their theses and dissertations at the end of the spring semester. In June, Jingya Wang’s Ocean Decade Video Competition concluded. You learn more about the event here, and watch people’s submissions on the newly launched CHEER YouTube Channel. Just last month, several Hub members traveled to Broomfield, CO, to present their research at the 50th Annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop, which you can read about here.
Another exciting highlight of the summer was CHEER’s third-annual summer scholars program. Under the guidance of Education Director Meghan Millea, seven students participated in various research and community engagement activities across eastern North Carolina. To complement these endeavors, the scholars also pursued an individual research question throughout the course of the program. These projects allowed them to harness the knowledge they gained from interviews, site visits, and data collection. Their contributions, which you can learn more about here, to CHEER’s research goals will have a lasting impact on the Hub.
As we enter peak hurricane season, the media has tapped into the expertise of the Hub’s researchers. Sarah DeYoung, leader of CHEER’s households thrust, was featured twice in two separate pieces from Yale Climate Connections. The Denton Record-Chronicle spotlighted Julie Elliott, one of the Hub’s PhD students, who deployed to Kerr County just days after the devastating flash flood in Texas Hill Country. More recently, I was interviewed by the Washington Post about my perspective on North Carolina’s evacuation decision-making during Hurricane Helene. These features are just a minor testament to the importance and relevance of the Hub’s work.
We hope you’ll enjoy this edition of The CHEER Chronicle and the chance to see the important research our team is pursuing. We are excited to continue our outstanding work. In the meantime, the best way to stay updated on the Hub’s progress is by subscribing to our e-newsletter and joining our LinkedIn page. As always, stay in touch and don’t hesitate to reach out with your feedback, questions, or thoughts.
