Margaret A. Davidson has a legacy as a coastal and climate adaptation champion. She founded NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management, initiated NOAA’s climate adaptation work, and countless other endeavors. The Association of State Floodplain Managers (a Digital Coast partner) awarded the first Margaret A. Davidson Award for Excellence in Climate Change Adaptation to a small town mayor and resilience visionary, Janelle Kellman.
Janelle’s community of Sausalito, California, experienced severe sunny day flooding for several years due to rising sea levels. However, when she took office, she realized the city had no climate plans, no resources dedicated to these areas, and no flood mitigation plans. She reached out to other elected officials and local decision-makers around the U.S. and found they were in similar situations. So she founded the Center for Sea Rise Solutions, a nonprofit focused on helping these officials develop and implement coastal resilience plans. Janelle is also a strong champion of engaging women and people of color in coastal resilience.
