Cape Codders have experienced their fair share of extreme weather in recent years, with stronger storms and larger storm surge reshaping once familiar shorelines.

With Cape Cod’s 52,000 acres of floodplain vulnerable to 10-12 inches of sea level rise in the next 30 years, communities across our region recognize the need to improve their ability to withstand natural disasters and environmental change. But knowing what to do and how to prepare can be a difficult challenge.

To help address this problem, WHOI Sea Grant is sponsoring a range of community-building events across the region from June 8 through June 15, 2024, as part of its Cape Cod Coastal Resilience Week. Events throughout the week include a coastal resilience fair, film screenings, resilience-themed pub trivia nights, a climate anxiety webinar, trail walks, and a pre-concert storytelling event at the Cape Cod Symphony, all of which provide opportunities to hear from and interact with scientists and other experts in the field.

“WHOI Sea Grant and its partners are resources for coastal hazard and storm preparedness information,” said Shelly McComb, the coastal resilience specialist with WHOI Sea Grant and Cape Cod Cooperative Extension. “Through our resilience events, we want people to learn what they can do to increase their resilience as individuals, neighborhoods and communities – and to have some fun while they’re at it. It’s all about learning how to be prepared and coming away feeling a part of a community that can take action and embrace change together.”

A family-friendly kick-off event on June 8 – World Ocean Day – at Mashpee Commons’ Naukabout Beer Garden features games, kids activities, face painting, food trucks, a bike repair and maintenance clinic, local artists and informational tables loaded with helpful tips and resources from more than a dozen Cape Cod resilience-oriented organizations.

All event dates and times are listed on the Coastal Resilience Week webpage. Events include:

• A Resilience Fair to kick-off Coastal Resilience Week
• ResilientWoodsHole Walking Trail - guided walks highlighting resilience efforts in this coastal village
• A free screening of “Inundation District” in partnership with the Woods Hole Film Festival followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker David Abel and resilience experts Heather McElroy, natural resource specialist at Cape Cod Commission, and Dr. Sarah Das, WHOI climate scientist and member of the Governor's Climate Science Advisory Panel.
• A Trail Walk at Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge on Morris Island in Chatham
• Webinar: Using the MyCoast App to Document Storms with MA Office of Coastal Zone Management
• Resilience-themed Trivia at Sea Dog Brew Pub in Yarmouth
• Emergency Preparedness Talk at the Brewster Ladies Library
• Resilience-themed Trivia at Sandwich Taverna in Sandwich
• Webinar: Climate Anxiety Workshop with Kate Schapira
• Pre-concert program at the Cape Cod Symphony’s “Our Ocean” Performance called “Living at the Shore: Stories of Coastal Resilience”

“Cape Cod is vulnerable to many coastal threats and changing conditions and adapting to these changes can be daunting,” said Shannon Hulst, floodplain specialist with WHOI Sea Grant and Cape Cod Cooperative Extension. “By holding events that highlight these issues across Cape Cod, we want to connect people with what’s happening in their communities to improve resilience so they are empowered and prepared to adapt.”

A full list of Cape Cod Coastal Resilience Week events is listed on the WHOI Sea Grant website at seagrant.whoi.edu/cccrw-2024, along with Extension Bulletins and resources related to coastal issues and flooding.

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About WHOI Sea Grant

Based at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the Sea Grant program encourages environmental stewardship, long-term economic development, and responsible use of the nation’s coastal and ocean resources. The program supports research and education, and an extension program in collaboration with the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension. It is part of the NOAA-funded National Sea Grant College Program, a network of 34 individual programs located in each of the coastal and Great Lakes states. More information can be found at seagrant.whoi.edu.