On Jan. 20, St. Mary's College of Maryland. (SMCM) alumnus Michael Wade '25 presented his St. Mary's Project (SMP) research for scientists and researchers at the Scientists Serving Communities (SSC) conference. Hosted by the University of Maryland’s Climate Resilience Network, the conference aims to connect decision makers and community members to research coming from the University of Maryland system.
Wade’s research, conducted under the direction of SMCM Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Parisa Rinaldi, documents the differences in understanding of shoreline management policy between coastal communities and shoreline management professionals. Wade’s goal was to formally document this discrepancy, which to this point had only been anecdotally substantiated, through quantitative and qualitative data in order to address knowledge gaps and establish more effective cross-community discourse.
Conference sessions focused on connecting the research and stakeholder communities around issues such as tidal flooding, saltwater intrusion, nutrient runoff from agricultural lands, and responsible road salting. Various networking workshops throughout the conference prompted further engagement between decision makers and scientists. Wade, who first attended SSC in 2025 said that “the chance to attend for the second time was incredibly valuable. Not only to follow up with researchers who informed my SMP and to connect with new scientists, but to see how far SSC has developed in their mission of connecting communities.”
