One of the research courses funded for the Spring is the Florida Climate Institute’s Field Course, an interdisciplinary, team-taught class that introduces students from departments across UF to the challenges that communities face following disasters to recover effectively and achieve long-term resilience.
In the first part of the semester, students were introduced via lecture to fundamentals of the planning & design, law & policy, engineering, and communications challenges facing coastal cities in relation to sea-level rise, storm risk, and other factors that affect their long-term resilience. Working in teams, students were assigned a scenario analysis exercise in which they use knowledge gained from the readings and lectures to envision how Port St. Joe not only recovers from Hurricane Michael but builds back better and more equitably than before.
Student projects include: “Regional Land-Use and Water Quality: Balancing Restoration and Economic Development for Regional Resilience,” “A Regional Park Network Connecting Port St. Joe and Protecting its Future,” “A Resilient Urban Design and Flood Management Strategy to Reconnect Port St. Joe and Adapt to Greater Flood Risk,” and “Housing and Neighborhoods: Promoting Sustainable, Equitable Places for People to Call Home.”
During spring break, students spent five intensive days in Port St. Joe visiting relevant sites and hearing from locals and experts in a variety of fields to inform their scenario analysis and associated work product. After a four day “charette” style studio, students presented their progress to the community and received enthusiastic feedback and ideas for next steps. Students will use the remainder of the semester to develop alternative policy, design, infrastructure, and communication paths that Port St. Joe might pursue for moving forward into an equitable and resilient future.
Course Administration and Coordinator: Carolyn Cox, Florida Climate Institute
Faculty Core Team: Jeff Carney, School of Architecture; Alyson Larson, College of Journalism and Communications; Tim McLendon, College of Law; Cleary Larkin, Florida Institute for Built Environment Resilience; Corene Matyas, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; David Prevatt, Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering
UF Contributors and Lecturers: Thomas Hawkins, Mike Volk & David Hulse, College of Design, Construction, & Planning; David Kaplan, Engineering School of Sustainable Infrastructure and the Environment; Joan Flocks, School of Law; Bill O’Dell, Shimberg Center for Housing; Thomas Ruppert, Florida Sea Grant; Moni Basu, School of Journalism and Communications; Jason von Meding, Rinker School of Construction Management; Lori Pennington-Gray, Department of Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management; Mike Allen, Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences; Peter Frederick, Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation.