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Climate and Sustainability Academy

Coastal Community Resilience Immersive Training Program

Understanding and addressing the numerous threats facing coastal communities due to environmental hazards.

Program Overview

The Coastal Community Resilience Immersive Training (C-CRIT) Program annually trains a cohort of six AmeriCorps interns who work directly with a coastal North Carolina community to map assets and evaluate their vulnerabilities to environmental hazards.

This immersive 10-week program blends hands-on fieldwork with technical training. Interns develop skills in geospatial analysis, GIS software, data visualization, and science communication, while building a strong foundation in concepts such as vulnerability, risk, and adaptive capacity.

Interns collaborate directly with a partner community to complete risk and vulnerability assessments that combine data-driven analysis with local knowledge. They help document key assets—including cultural sites, gathering spaces, and areas of recurring flooding—that may not appear in existing datasets, ensuring that each assessment reflects lived experience as well as technical expertise.

Interns collaborate directly with a partner community to complete risk and vulnerability assessments that combine data-driven analysis with local knowledge. They help document key assets—including cultural sites, gathering spaces, and areas of recurring flooding—that may not appear in existing datasets, ensuring that each assessment reflects lived experience as well as technical expertise.

Student interns present project findings to group.
2025 C-CRIT interns met with Gates County leaders in the ninth week of the program to present preliminary findings and solicit feedback.

At the end of the program, interns deliver materials that are designed to support partnering communities to advance their resilience planning, such as by identifying priority resilience projects and pursuing funding to move them forward.

Training materials developed for C-CRIT have also been adapted into online, 1-credit graduate courses at NC State (NR 595 601 and NR 595 602, taught in Spring semesters), with plans to expand into continuing education offerings for a wider professional audience.

The C-CRIT program is a partnership between the Climate and Sustainability Academy, Conservation Corps North Carolina, and the Center for Geospatial Analytics. It is supported by NC State’s Office of University Interdisciplinary Programs (OUIP) and the Kenan Institute for Engineering, Technology and Science (KIETS), with additional funding from Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), United Parcel Service (UPS) Foundation, and Eastman.

People and Partners:

The C-CRIT program is led by Dr. Rebecca Ward, C-CRIT Program Director and Climate and Sustainability Academy postdoctoral research scholar, and Dr. Georgina Sanchez, C-CRIT Data Analytics Program Mentor and Associate Director of Research Engagement with the Center for Geospatial Analytics. The C-CRIT leadership team also includes Dr. Erin Seekamp, Executive Director of the Climate and Sustainability Academy, and Amanda Mueller, Director KIETS Climate Leaders Program. Experts within and outside of NC State University contribute to the program’s training and development. 

The C-CRIT program is modeled after the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management’s Resilient Coastal Communities Program (RCCP), which supports communities in the state’s 20 Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) counties through a structured four-phase process: community engagement and risk and vulnerability assessment, planning and project prioritization, engineering and design, and implementation.

C-CRIT focuses primarily on Phase 1 of the RCCP, helping eligible communities initiate or deepen resilience planning. It also fills critical gaps by providing similar technical resources to communities outside RCCP’s geographic scope. The program draws on the RCCP Planning Handbook and the expertise of RCCP staff and partners from state agencies, regional organizations, and universities. C-CRIT’s success reflects the strength of the RCCP framework and its collaborative model, extending these benefits to a broader range of North Carolina communities.

Student interns meet with Gates County leaders to review project.
2025 C-CRIT intern Grace Upton discusses preliminary vulnerability assessment findings with a Gates County county commissioner.

Community partnerships are central to C-CRIT’s mission. The program works closely with local leaders, including county staff, elected officials, and community champions, whose expertise and deep understanding of place are critical to guiding our work. In its first year, C-CRIT partnered with Jones County and in its second year with Gates County, providing technical assistance and hands-on workforce development that support community resilience goals. The openness, generosity, and commitment of these community partners have created a welcoming environment for interns and ensured that each assessment reflects local priorities.

Gates County | 2025 C-CRIT Cohort

In its second year, the C-CRIT program partnered with Gates County, North Carolina. Located along the Virginia border in the northeastern part of the state, Gates County is known for its rich natural and cultural heritage, including Merchants Millpond State Park and part of the Great Dismal Swamp. These iconic landscapes support recreation, conservation, and a strong connection to the region’s history. With a long tradition of farming and forestry, as well as landmarks like the Historic Gates County Courthouse, built in 1836, the county offers a strong sense of place and a deep commitment to community.

2025 C-CRIT cohort and mentors
2025 C-CRIT cohort and program leaders at Merchants Millpond State Park, following a meeting with community leaders to share and discuss preliminary vulnerability assessment findings.

The 2025 C-CRIT Cohort completed a comprehensive risk and vulnerability assessment for Gates County, working closely with local leaders throughout the process. Their findings highlighted the county’s existing strengths and resilience, revealing a community actively engaged in adaptation efforts. Through this work, the cohort gained valuable insight into how Gates County is planning not only for immediate challenges like the next storm but also for long-term growth that preserves the rural character so important to the community. 

Explore the deliverables from the 2025 C-CRIT program collaboration with Gates County:

These Assessment Coordinators formed the 2025 cohort and collaborated closely with Gates County to map assets, assess vulnerabilities, and develop the final deliverables:

  • Charm Wheaton (environmental assessment master’s)
  • Grace Upton (NC State GIS certificate program; BS Biology and BA Environmental Sustainability, 2025, Meredith College)
  • Ashelynn Jacobson (industrial and systems engineering major)
  • Akshita Govindaraj (environmental sciences major)
  • Benton Blair (environmental technology and management major, renewable energy assessment minor)
  • Colin Bahr (environmental engineering major, environmental sciences minor)

On July 18, 2025, the 2025 C-CRIT cohort held a poster symposium to celebrate their collective achievements. Each member showcased a poster highlighting a topic they were especially passionate about and their contributions to the report. Explore the posters and photos from the symposium below:

Jones County | 2024 C-CRIT Cohort

In the inaugural year of the program, we partnered with Jones County, North Carolina. Situated about two hours east of NC State University, Jones County boasts abundant natural and economic resources, including the Trent River, Hofmann Forest, Croatan National Forest, and fertile agricultural lands. Home to the communities of Trenton, Pollocksville, and Maysville, Jones County is only 30 miles from the beach. Despite not bordering the coast directly, Jones County experiences many of the challenges faced by county counties, including more intense rainfall and flooding.

The 2024 C-CRIT cohort completed a comprehensive risk and vulnerability assessment focused on flooding, a major hazard for the area, gaining hands-on experience in community engagement, geospatial analysis, and service over 10 weeks.

2024 C-CRIT presentation at Jones County
C-CRIT Team members and Jones County leaders pose for a photo at the Jones County Civic Center during a July 10, 2024 presentation and feedback session.

The following AmeriCorps members comprised the 2024 cohort and played an integral role in this work:

  • Lexy Boudreau (environmental engineering major; science technology and society major) 
  • Sheridan Ely (engineering and Spanish double-major), Emma Hester (environmental engineering major) 
  • Roselyn Hopp (industrial engineering major; environmental science minor)
  • Mckinley Richardson (biological and agricultural engineering technology major) 
  • Jack Voight (environmental engineering major; film studies minor).

Explore the deliverables from the 2024 C-CRIT Program:

2024 C-CRIT interns and mentors.

On July 19, 2024, the 2024 C-CRIT cohort held a poster symposium to celebrate their collective achievements. Each member showcased a poster highlighting a topic they were especially passionate about and their contributions to the report. Explore the posters below.