Training
A Community Works Together to Restore the Floodplain and Reduce Damages
See how community leaders are engaging stakeholders and residents to reduce riverine flooding by reclaiming the floodplain
Amending Land Use Codes for Natural Infrastructure Planning
Learn how a Sea Grant agent is working with one community to audit and amend its existing land use codes and ordinances to be more inclusive of green infrastructure projects.
Building Higher and Stronger to Prepare for Future Storms
Learn about strategies for incorporating stricter floodplain building standards as residents recover from a major storm
Building Momentum for Green Infrastructure Implementation
Learn how investing in a green infrastructure study helped a community gain support for green infrastructure with transparent information
Communities Use a Regional Planning Framework to Identify Investments in Nature-Based Projects
Collaboration tools and techniques for prioritizing nature-based project opportunities in a boundary-spanning planning process.
Community Rain Gardens are a Great Environmental Outreach Tool
Learn how simple, low-impact development projects for controlling stormwater can build local support for natural and sustainable practices
Community Resilience Planning on a Budget
See how a regional planner joined forces with a state geologist to increase municipal resilience through partnerships, persistence, and local know-how
Community-Led Resilience Program Leads to Shovel-Ready Projects
Learn how a state’s resilience program is getting coastal communities to “shovel-ready” nature-based projects.
Designing Green Infrastructure Standards for Retrofits
Learn how one community used a collaborative approach to developing green infrastructure standards for retrofits
Designing Living Shorelines for New England Coasts
Discover strategies for a living shorelines approach in cold climates from an ecologist's perspective
Developing the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Hazard Mitigation Plan
Learn how one tribal community approached hazard mitigation planning.
Dune Restoration Increases Flood Protection and Access for Community
Discover how this community is using dune restoration as an adaptive management strategy for coastal flooding and sea level rise.
Dynamic Revetments Provide A Nature-Based Approach to Control Erosion in High Wave Energy Environments
Learn how dynamic revetments are being used in high wave energy locations to reduce erosion.
Environmental Clean-Up Unites and Revitalizes a Waterfront Community
Discover how this community transformed its image through waterfront revitalization efforts
Fostering Resilient, Multimodal Transportation Solutions along the California Coast
Learn how a coastal zone management program and state transportation agency built a unique partnership to ensure sustainable transportation systems with positive environmental outcomes along the co...
Fostering Tsunami-Resilient Communities through Land Use Planning
Learn how communities are working with the state’s coastal program to build their resilience to tsunamis through land use planning.
From Gray to Green: Replacing a Bulkhead with a Living Shoreline at a High-Energy Riverine Site
Learn about the living shoreline approach this restoration expert took to stabilize an eroding shoreline and restore habitat, paving the way for future projects.
Home Elevation Program Demystifies the Process
See how community leaders are helping to educate homeowners and contractors on home elevation.
Implementing Green Infrastructure at Multiple Scales to Enhance Resilience
Learn how to approach green infrastructure at all scales to enhance resilience to hazards and future climate change impacts.
Increasing Flood Risk Awareness through a Real Estate Professional Training Program
Learn how a flood administrator expanded her program’s reach by training local real estate professionals on flood risks, flood maps, and flood insurance.
Innovative Green Infrastructure Project Has Diverse Funding and Financing Portfolio
Learn how this water authority financed a green infrastructure project that not only reduces flooding, but also provides recreational, environmental, and social benefits to its community.
Investing in Flood Mitigation Pays Off Immensely
Learn how one small community is investing in different land use approaches such as open space preservation to reduce flooding, resulting in savings for flood insurance policy holders.
Louisiana Parish Creates a Model Subdivision Ordinance to Enhance Public Safety and Resilience to Coastal Storms and Flood Events
Discover the approach used to create a model ordinance that enhanced public safety and community resilience to flood hazards
Navy Pier Redevelopment Project Serves as Model of Sustainability Using Green Infrastructure
Learn about one green infrastructure technique to manage stormwater runoff
On the Forefront of Nutrient Credit Trading Using Oysters: Lessons Learned
Learn more about the successes and challenges one environmental agency encountered developing a nutrient credit trading market using oysters.
Out of Harm's Way: Relocation Strategies to Reduce Flood Risk
Learn how a community used buyouts and relocations to permanently reduce its flood risk
Planning for a Resilient Recovery Before a Disaster Strikes
Learn about one state’s approach to disaster recovery preparedness.
Post-Disaster Coral Reef Assessment and Restoration Set Important Precedent for Coastal Communities
Discover how scientists are using innovative approaches to reattach corals after hurricanes
Post-Sandy Recovery Efforts Provide Opportunity to Prepare for Future Flooding
Find strategies for using post-storm recovery efforts to boost overall community resilience.
Resiliency Officer Helps Design an Environmental Impact Bond to Finance Community Resilience Projects
Provides creative ideas and lessons learned for developing an Environmental Impact Bond to fund community resilience projects.
Sharing Stories and Improving Discussions about Floodplain Buyout
Learn how one floodplain manager used risk communication best practices to help implement a flood acquisition program.
Stakeholder Engagement Process Reaps Big Rewards for Climate Adaptation Project
Learn how stakeholders are using a collaborative planning process to assess their hazard risks, vulnerabilities, and mitigation opportunities
Using Novel Approaches to Create Resilient Dune Systems Following Hurricane Maria
Learn about creative ecological restoration techniques for building storm resilient coastal dune systems.
Watershed Outreach Coordinators Help Municipalities Conduct Hazard Resilience Planning
Learn about the stakeholder engagement and visual approaches used to propel towns into hazards resilience planning
Zoning Ordinance Overhauled to Increase Community Resilience to Flooding
Learn about a resilience ordinance designed to reduce flooding impacts
A Community Resource Guide for Planning Living Shorelines Projects
Provides communities with key information and resources for moving forward with living shoreline projects in New Jersey
Advancing Preparedness of Climate Change Impacts on Coastal Communities in the Mid-Atlantic
Documents an assessment of climate change impacts on the Mid-Atlantic region and suggestions for addressing those impacts at a state and regional scale
Coastal Adaptation Planning Guide: Five Steps for Beginners
Provides beginners with a five-step adaptation planning process with easy-to-understand explanations, key action items, case studies, common pitfalls, and helpful resources
ENOW Hawaii: Exploring the Hawaii Ocean Economy through a Deeper Dive into the ENOW Data Set
Offers a greater understanding of the existing data on Hawaii’s ocean economy and opportunities to estimate more accurate economic indicators for the ocean-dependent economy
Enhanced Engagement and Risk Communication for Residents in Underserved Communities: Research Findings, Best Practices, and Lessons Learned 2022
Highlights effective risk communication approaches, barriers, and recommendations for more equitable engagement to build resilience
How People Benefit from New Hampshire’s Great Bay Estuary
Provides the results of a collaborative project in which the values of ecosystem services were estimated by comparing two management scenarios with current conditions
Hurricane Sandy and the Value of Trade-Offs in Coastal Restoration and Protection
Provides three case studies illustrating how coastal managers can use economic values of ecosystem services in making restoration and coastal protection decisions
Introduction to Conducting Focus Groups
Introduces key elements and practices that will increase the success of a focus group effort
Introduction to Economics for Coastal Managers
Describes basic economic concepts and methods and explains how state and local government officials can use them to make better-informed decisions
Introduction to Social Network Analysis
Describes the basic method for conducting a social network analysis to “map” informal connections within and between groups
Introduction to Stakeholder Participation
Discusses some of the most important considerations and offers a guide to the most common techniques
Introduction to Survey Design and Delivery
Provides insight into the various types and methods of survey research
Lidar 101: An Introduction to Lidar Technology, Data, and Applications
Provides an overview of the data produced by lidar sensors and ways to customize and use these data to inform coastal decisions
NOAA Reports on the U.S. Marine Economy
Examines and visually illustrates the economic contributions of the oceans and Great Lakes
National Coastal Population Report: Population Trends from 1970 to 2020
Presents basic demographic status and trends information from 1970 to 2020 for coastal shoreline and watershed counties
Risk Communication Basics
Outlines how stakeholders respond to risk, why those responses occur, and how community leaders can inspire risk-wise behavior through improved communication
Stakeholder Engagement Strategies for Participatory Mapping
Provides simple strategies for leading a participatory mapping process, focusing primarily on stakeholder involvement
The Economic Contribution of the National Estuarine Research Reserves: A Pilot Study
Estimates the economic contributions of four reserves to the economies of their local communities
The National Significance of California's Ocean Economy
Outlines the inland significance of California’s marine transportation and ocean tourism sectors
A Framework for Ecosystem Services Projects Worksheet
Allows a closer examination into the questions provided in the companion quick reference checklist for considering ecosystem services in project planning
Additional Data Needs and Information for a Community Risk and Vulnerability Assessment
Provides information, data, and topics for consideration during community risk and vulnerability discussions
Building Risk Communication Skills: Questions to Ask and What to Listen For
Provides questions to help get the conversation started about risks
Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) Land Cover Classifications
Provides a description of land cover classes used within NOAA’s Coastal Change Analysis Program(C-CAP) regional land cover products
Common Data Collection Methods for Evaluation
Provides a summary of the most common methods for collecting data needed for project or program evaluation
Community Goals Scorecard
Offers an easy-to-follow format to determine how well existing development policies and regulations support a community’s economic, environmental, and social goals
Connecting with Your Audience: Planning Your Next Interaction
Offers a process to plan your next interaction on coastal hazard risks
Defining Coastal Counties
Provides definitions of coastal shoreline counties and coastal watershed counties
Defining the Problem
Offers a tool to help identify complex social aspects of resource management issues
ENOW Counties List
Provides a list of the 400 coastal counties included in the Economics: National Ocean Watch (ENOW) data set
Economic Approaches for Decision-Making
Provides a glossary of economic terms, guidance on choosing approaches to meet your economic objectives, and methodology guides to help navigate the process
Evaluation Report Checklist
Provides a management tool to monitor the progress of evaluation report contributors and delegate and coordinate tasks
Facilitation Techniques
Provides a list of key techniques facilitators use to lead successful meeting discussions
Feasibility of Adaptation Options
Provides information and guidance for assessing community climate adaptation options
Funding and Financing: Options and Considerations for Coastal Resilience Projects
Describes ways to financially support coastal resilience projects, as well as benefits, considerations, and examples for each
Grant Proposal Development Resources
Helps in finding, preparing, and submitting federal grant applications
Green Infrastructure Benefits
Provides information for local officials on the benefits of green infrastructure for resilience
Green Infrastructure Options to Reduce Flooding
Offers practices for flood reduction and to help communities design a green infrastructure strategy
Measuring the Value of Ecosystem Services
Provides a brief summary of the importance of measuring the value of ecosystem services for coastal management, as well as tips and best practices
Meeting Engagement Tools
Offers a suite of tools in three categories, planning, facilitating, and activities, all of which are essential for executing an effective meeting
Meeting Evaluation Template
Provides a worksheet to use when gathering evaluation feedback from meeting participants
Natural and Structural Measures for Shoreline Stabilization
Presents easy-to-digest information on shoreline stabilization techniques, including living shorelines
Nature-Based Solutions: Benefits, Costs, and Economic Assessments
Offers straightforward information about nature-based solutions, benefits, and costs, as well as tips for conducting a related economic analysis, in three quick references
Participants Checklist for Risk and Vulnerability Assessment
Provides a helpful checklist for leaders who are enlisting people to participate in risk and vulnerability discussions
Preliminary Ecosystem Services Framework: Project Checklist
Provides a preliminary assessment to ensure you are on the right track when planning an ecosystem services project
Process Agenda Template
Provides guidance for facilitators and meeting leaders on creating a productive meeting agenda
Risk Communication Best Practices
Offers a tip sheet of best practices and techniques for risk communication projects
Risk Communication Strategy Template
Provides an easy-to-follow worksheet for developing a risk communication strategy
Rubric to Assess Readiness for an Evaluation
Provides a scoring guide to assess a program’s or project’s readiness for an evaluation
Socioeconomic Data Summary
Provides concise descriptions and facts for the U.S. coastal economy, ocean economy, and coastal population and their appropriate uses
Stakeholder Analysis Worksheet
Provides a simple process for identifying stakeholders to involve in a community-wide decision-making process
Tips for Creating Partnerships with FEMA, NOAA, and State Emergency Programs
Offers tips and opportunities to connect with FEMA, NOAA, and state agency resources to achieve coastal resilience, risk reduction, and storm preparedness goals
Virtual Meeting Engagement
Provides tools for planning, facilitating, and participating in virtual meetings
Vulnerability Assessment - Informing Adaptation Actions
Provides guidance on designing a vulnerability assessment
Writing SMART Objectives
Provides guidance on how to create clearly defined objectives for any project or program
Adaptation Planning for Coastal Communities
Provides a thorough introduction to adaptation planning, including practical skills, in-class exercises, and local speakers and discussions (2-day course)
Building Risk Communication Skills
Increases understanding of risk response and helps participants connect with diverse audiences to motivate action to reduce risk (1-day course)
Coastal Inundation Mapping
Provides information about coastal flooding data and products with instruction on mapping various inundation extents using a GIS (2-day course)
Economic Guidance for Coastal Management Professionals
Provides information about approaches for economic analysis, relevant examples, and guidance on how to conduct basic benefit-cost analysis and ecosystem service valuation
Estimating the Local Marine Economy: Telling Your Story
Provides step-by-step guidance for identifying and accessing local sources of economic data and telling your local economic story (1-day course)
Facilitation Basics for Coastal Managers
Provides instruction on tools for planning and conducting meetings that efficiently achieve objectives and minimize conflict (1-day course)
Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Hazards
Prepares coastal planners and managers for planning and implementing green or natural infrastructure projects to reduce coastal natural hazards in their communities (1-day course)
Planning Effective Projects for Coastal Communities
Provides the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to design and implement projects with measurable impacts
Social Science Basics for Coastal Managers
Offers a choice of workshop modules that help participants learn more about their coastal management community (1-day course)
Advancing Coastal Resilience through Nature-Based Solutions
Sharing NOAA-supported projects that use nature-based solutions to advance coastal resilience
Coastal Adaptation Planning Essentials
Engages participants in individual and group activities to introduce a five-step planning process for adaptation (2 day course)
Diving into the Digital Coast
Offers a customizable training that highlights the Digital Coast data, tools, and training best suited for your coastal management issue
Fostering Behavior Change in Coastal Communities
Introduces participants to a basic approach used in coastal management projects to influence the way people interact with their environment
Funding and Financing Coastal Resilience
Introduces the various approaches available to coastal managers and planners for funding and financing coastal resilience projects, such as natural (green) infrastructure
Seven Best Practices for Risk Communication
Introduces participants to the techniques most useful for effective communication about coastal hazards (90-minute webinar)
Three Steps to Better Risk Communication
Walks participants through the development of a strategy that applies risk communication principles to overcome local communication challenges
Virtual - Economic Guidance for Coastal Management Professionals
Provides an overview of economic methods such as benefits-cost analysis, economic impact analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, and others
Virtual - Estimating the Local Marine Economy: Telling Your Story
Provides step-by-step guidance for identifying and accessing local sources of economic data and telling your local economic story
Virtual - Facilitation Basics for Coastal Managers
Provides tools to design and implement productive in-person and virtual meetings
Virtual - Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Hazards
Preps coastal managers and other professionals for planning and implementing green (natural) infrastructure projects to reduce natural coastal hazards
Virtual - Planning Effective Projects for Coastal Communities
Provides the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to design and implement projects with measurable impacts (2-3 day course)
Virtual - Social Science Basics for Coastal Managers
Provides basic knowledge and skills to help coastal managers understand their stakeholders by applying social science tools
A Framework for Developing Monitoring Plans for Coastal Wetland Restoration and Living Shoreline Projects in New Jersey
Guides users in selecting monitoring metrics, collecting data, and developing a monitoring plan for coastal wetland restoration and living shoreline projects
A Guide for Incorporating Ecosystem Service Valuation into Coastal Restoration Projects
Outlines a process for measuring socioeconomic benefits of salt marshes, living shorelines, and oyster reefs
A Guide for Planning for Meaningful Evaluation
Outlines a process for planning evaluations that can improve any project or program
A Guide to Assessing Green Infrastructure Costs and Benefits for Flood Reduction
Outlines six steps to help communities determine costs of flooding and green infrastructure approaches
A Seat at the Table: Training for Whole-Community Climate Resilience Planning
Provides resilience planning practitioners with information and resources for identifying and engaging socially vulnerable populations through a whole-community planning approach
Adapting Stormwater Management for Coastal Floods
Provides guidance and methods to identify current and future coastal flood risk, examine impacts on stormwater systems, and explore appropriate actions to respond
Coastal Community Resilience Indicators and Rating Systems
Helps local planners sort through the numerous resources for benchmarking resilience and tracking progress
Coastal Ecosystem Services Management Guide
Provides resources for building conceptual models of coastal ecosystem services following a framework that is standardized, flexible, and credible
Coastal and Waterfront Smart Growth Guide
Provides guidance resources and case studies for implementing smart growth strategies in coastal and waterfront communities
Federal Resource Management and Ecosystem Services Guidebook
Assists resource managers in incorporating ecosystem services into planning and management processes
Great Lakes Coastal Resilience Planning Guide
Connects users with the case studies, maps, tools, and data they need to increase community resilience to natural hazards and climate change
Guide for Considering Climate Change in Coastal Conservation
Offers a step-by-step approach for incorporating climate change into coastal conservation planning and provides resources to help
How to Map Open Space for Community Rating System Credit
Outlines a step-by-step process describing how to calculate open space credits for existing preserved lands and areas that may be considered for future protection
How to Use Land Cover Data as a Water Quality Indicator
Demonstrates how land cover data can be used to assess several water quality indicators
How to Write a Strategic Plan
Provides a step-by-step process for developing a strategic plan
Naturally Resilient Communities
Provides nature-based solutions and a collection of case studies to help communities address flooding and erosion hazards
Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Highway Resilience: An Implementation Guide
Provides guidance and examples on nature-based solutions to protect coastal transportation infrastructure
Needs Assessment Guide
Provides instruction and guidance for people conducting a needs assessment
Participatory Mapping of Ocean Uses
Provides instructions and resources for designing workshops that gather useful, map-based information from a variety of ocean resource user groups
Reducing Hazard Impacts through Plan Alignment
Encourages collaborative planning and implementation across agencies by integrating local plans
Resilience Metrics
Provides facilitation tools, job aids, and resources to define adaptation success and identify indicators and metrics to measure progress toward resilience goals
St. Louis River Estuary Public Access and Cultural Guidebook
Provides a useful overview of recreational opportunities and the cultural significance of the St. Louis River Estuary and environs
Stormwater Management in Pacific and Caribbean Islands: A Practitioner's Guide to Implementing Low Impact Development
Helps designers, engineers, agencies, and others advance the application of low impact development practices to manage stormwater runoff
The Economic Contribution of Working Waterfronts
Provides the methodology, case studies, estimation options, and data source ideas for estimating the economic contribution of working waterfronts
What Will Adaptation Cost? An Economic Framework for Coastal Community Infrastructure
Helps community leaders and planners make more economically informed decisions about adapting to sea level rise and storm flooding
Econ 120: Principles of Coastal Economics
Explains complex economic concepts in everyday terms
Estuaries: Nature’s Water Filters
Demonstrates the role estuaries play in filtering nutrients and pollutants from land runoff as it enters larger bodies of water
Ocean Dimensions
Describes the complexity of ocean use planning and how MarineCadastre.gov helps officials evaluate sites for their offshore projects (1-minute video)
Takeaways from the 2022 Sea Level Rise Technical Report
Introduces the technical report, highlights key takeaways, and provides initial actions communities can take
Tsunamis: Be Prepared and Stay Safe!
Explains how to prepare for and respond to a tsunami (1-minute video)
Understanding the National Hurricane Center's Potential Storm Surge Flooding Map
Provides information that the public needs to better understand storm surge and the threat it poses to life and property (3-minute video)
What is Storm Surge?
Provides information about storm surge and its impacts (1-minute video)
Advancing Coastal Resilience through Nature-Based Solutions (Recorded Webinars)
Explore new ideas and ways to address common challenges when implementing nature-based solutions
Funding and Financing Coastal Resilience (Recorded Webinars)
Provides information about both traditional and emerging funding and financing approaches for coastal resilience projects
Land Cover Products for Understanding Water Quality Impacts
Provides information and tools to show how land cover impacts water quality (46-minute webinar)
Living Shorelines: Bringing Together Science, Restoration, and Management on Our Nation's Coasts
Introduces the “living shorelines” concept and highlights examples from across the country (57-minute webinar)
Moving Back from the Mid-Atlantic Coast: Advancing the Conversation
Features scientists and experienced practitioners working in the Mid-Atlantic to proactively move people, structures, and infrastructure out of harm’s way
Using Benthic Habitat Data for Ecosystem-Based Management
Presents a case study from California on using nearshore benthic habitat maps to develop restoration goals (26-minute webinar)
Vessel Tracking Data Used for Ocean Planning
Provides an overview of vessel tracking data and tools, and how to apply them to ocean planning (58-minute webinar)
Climate 101: Science, Impacts, and Society
Provides an introduction to climate change basics for professional audiences
Coastal Zone Management Act 101
Offers a collection of learning resources for new coastal management program staff members
Dealing with Disruptive Behaviors in Meetings
Provides a quick reference guide for dealing with distracting behaviors during a meeting or event
Green Infrastructure Effectiveness Database
Fosters discovery of literature on the effectiveness and economics of green infrastructure for coastal resilience
Green Infrastructure Mapping Guide
Provides detailed guidance for GIS analysts looking to incorporate flood-reducing conservation strategies into community planning efforts
Green Infrastructure Protective Services
Explains the concept of green infrastructure and its coastal storm protection benefits
High Tide Flooding Impacts
Explains the threats that come with shallow coastal flooding and shows how communities can best prepare
Introduction to Lidar
Learn how coastal communities use high-accuracy, lidar-derived elevation data to improve management decisions
Mapping Repetitive Flood Risk
Provides an understanding of flood risk through the process of mapping repetitive flood losses using GIS
Nature-Based Solutions for Coastal Hazards: The Basics
Provides an approach for identifying your community’s coastal hazard issues and green infrastructure practices that can help reduce impacts
Preparing for Effective Risk Communication
Provides a step-by-step approach for risk communication with a variety of audiences, including tips for connecting with people through more effective conversations
QNSPECT Tutorial
Provides step-by-step instructions for the setup and use of the QNSPECT tool
Risk Communication Essentials for More Effective Conversations
Demonstrates risk communication essentials to enable conversations that connect with your audience’s concerns and values
Risk Communication Mental Shortcuts: Why People Do What They Do
Demonstrates mental shortcuts people take to make decisions about risk, and provides communication tips on how to work with these shortcuts
Seven Best Practices for Risk Communication (Self-guided Module)
Introduces best practices and techniques for more effective engagement with a variety of audiences on risk from coastal hazards
Tutorial for Sea Level Rise Viewer: Local Scenarios
Provides guidance for working in the local scenarios tab of NOAA's Sea Level Rise Viewer
Tutorial for Sea Level Rise Viewer: Marsh Migration
Provides guidance for working in the marsh migration tab of NOAA’s Sea Level Rise Viewer
Understanding Enforceable Policies
Provides guiding checkpoints and interactive practice for determining whether state statutes or regulations would be approved as legally enforceable policies
Using Economics to Inform Decisions
Provides guidance on choosing economic approaches to meet your objectives, as well as methodology guides to help you navigate through your selected process
Working with Lidar
Learn how to work with lidar data—from finding and assessing it to selecting the correct products