The RAFT in the News

The RAFT is regularly featured in local, regional and national news outlets. For the most recent updates on RAFT localities and partners making change in their communities, please click the direct links below.

Virginia Public Radio - Universities unite to help communities prepare for and cope with climate change

The RAFT is highlighted on Virginia’s NPR, featuring two founding members, Elizabeth Andrews, formerly director of the Virginia Coastal Policy Center at William & Mary’s Law School and now with UVA as the Environmental Institute’s very first Environmental Sustainability and Resilience Practitioner Fellow, as well as Tanya Denckla Cobb, director of the UVA Institute for Engagement & Negotiation.

Celebrating RAFT Partnerships New and Old in an Expanded Effort to Build Climate Resilience Across Virginia 

The University of Virginia's School of Architecture announces the addition of new core team member Virginia Tech to the RAFT's multi-university collaborative. 

UVA's IEN Partners with Virginia Coastal Communities to Address Climate Change

The University of Virginia's School of Architecture highlights the work and media attention that The RAFT has received based on its resilience efforts in the Northern Neck of Virginia with funding from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund.

A Life RAFT for Coastal Communities

This article in UVA Envision Magazine describes the RAFT process in the Town of Colonial Beach and describes how money from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund has allowed the RAFT to broaden its scope to include economic and social challenges. 

RAFT Prepares Virginia's Northern Neck for Future Storms

Madeleine Jepsen with Virginia Sea Grant discusses The RAFT process in the Northern Neck. The article features photos of Colonial Beach and Warsaw as well as interviews with community members and RAFT Core Team members. 

In Rural Coastal Virginia, an Academic Tool Helps Jumpstart Flood Resilience

WHRO interviews Dr. Wie Yusuf of Old Dominion University about the RAFT's strategy in coastal Virginia. 

The National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine's Report on Motivating Local Climate Adaptation and Strengthening Resilience

The RAFT is featured in this report that details effective strategies for localized climate resilience. The authors praise the RAFT as an example of successful integration of expert insights and local action.

Virginia’s Proactive Plan to Tackle Coastal Resilience

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) reports on Virginia's Coastal Resilience Master Planning Framework. The article highlights The RAFT, as well as team member Elizabeth Andrews' contributions to state resilience efforts. 

How The RAFT Contributed to One Community’s Resilience

To hear from past RAFT localities about their experiences with The RAFT process and the advice they have for other communities developing their own Resilience Action Checklists see this video interview and testimonial with Joy Marino of Onancock, Virginia.

American Bar Association's Environment, Energy, and Resources Law: The Year in Review 2019

The Environment, Energy, and Resources Law: The Year in Review 2019, ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources, is a summary of significant legal developments in 2019 in the areas of environmental, energy, and resources law. The RAFT is featured on page X-7 under Section III. Innovative and Collaborative Organizations and Tools to Resolve Environmental Issues.

Tree Planting on Saxis

These images posted by the Virginia Department of Forestry on flickr document a tree planting held in Saxis, Virginia on February 8, 2020 to prevent erosion and manage floodwaters. This event was catalyzed during The RAFT’s work on the Eastern Shore.

Increasing Climate Resiliency: Assessing Community Risk and Readiness 

The Fall 2019/Winter 2020 issue of the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Magazine discusses The RAFT process in detail, describes its success supporting pilot localities and working at the regional scale on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, and highlights how communities have been supported to learn more about the Community Rating System under the National Flood Insurance Program. See pages 8-11 for more details.

Saxis Looks for Solutions to Rising Seas 

Pamela D’Angelo, with Virginia Public Radio, reports on how Saxis, one of The RAFT’s Eastern Shore localities, is learning to live with water while seeking solutions to rising seas. The article discusses how Saxis was able to affect real change in the town with the support of The RAFT team and regional partners they connected residents with.

Climate Adaptation Working Group 2018 Annual Report

The 2018 Annual Report of the Climate Adaptation Working Group highlights The RAFT’s success partnering with the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission to serve seven localities on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. See pages 11-12 for more details.

RAFT Partnership Fortifies Town Against Storm Hazards by Turning Ideas into Action

Madeleine Jepsen, Science Writing Intern with Virginia Sea Grant, discusses The RAFT process in the Town of Cape Charles and how lessons learned here will inform The RAFT’s regional work on the Eastern Shore.

Is Accomack Ready for Coastal Flooding? Study Shows Gaps 

This article in Delmarva Now describes The RAFT’s assessment of localities’ vulnerability to coastal flooding and how seven localities will receive one-year of facilitated resilience planning and implementation support.

The RAFT Wachapreague

These images posted on Virginia Sea Grant’s flickr account highlight former RAFT team members, Angela King and Michelle Covi, presenting on The RAFT to Wachapreague’s Town Council.

Cape Charles update on Resilience Adaptation and Feasibility Tool (The RAFT)

The Cape Charles Mirror describes Cape Charles’ participation in The RAFT as one of three pilot communities.

Group Gives Accomack Supervisors Tips on Flooding Resilience

A presentation to Accomack County’s Board of Supervisors on The RAFT is described as well as plans to support the Eastern Shore region in developing greater resilience to coastal hazards.

Workshop Helps Cape Charles Prepare for Flooding

The Eastern Shore Post reports on a Resilience Action Workshop conducted by The RAFT Team for the Town of Cape Charles.

This website, Task # 92.03 was funded by the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program at the Department of Environmental Quality through Grant # NA17NOS4190152 
of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended. The views expressed
herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, or any of its subagencies.

This project is currently a partnership between the Institute for Engagement & Negotiation at the University of Virginia, the Institute for Coastal Adaptation and Resilience at Old Dominion University, and the Center for Coastal Studies at Virginia Tech. The former Virginia Coastal Policy Center at the William & Mary Law School participated in this partnership from 2015 until June 2023.

 

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