MACRL’s work falls into two main research areas. Project descriptions are linked below.
Decision Support for Coastal Hazards Projects
CHAMP (Coastal Hazards Analysis, Modeling and Prediction) is a real-time storm forecasting platform built in partnership with Rhode Island state agencies. It takes high-resolution storm surge, wind, and flood model outputs and puts them in front of emergency managers in a form they can actually use during a hurricane or nor’easter. The projects below track CHAMP’s development and expansion across agencies and states, alongside related research on what makes decision-support tools work (or not work) in operational settings.
Current Projects
WARREN CHAMP: Coastal & Inland Flood Hazards, Analysis, Modeling & Prediction System
USCG CHAMP
New England Community-Driven Coastal Climate Research and Solutions (3CRS) Hub
From Prediction to Practice: Barriers to Adoption of Tools for Emergency Management – (Noah Hallisey – Dissertation)
Rhode Island Coastal Hazards, Analysis, Modeling and Prediction (RI-CHAMP)
Completed Projects
Coastal Resilience Risk Analysis of Rhode Island Coast Guard Units: A CHAMP Approach to Hazard Consequence Prediction
Connecticut CHAMP- Points of Interest: Implementing Simulation-Based Storm Hazard Consequence Prediction for Emergency Management (Sam Adams – Dissertation)
Applying Lewin Force-field Analysis to Enable Evacuation by Sea in the United States Evacuation by Sea: Overcoming Technological, Behavioral, and Institutional Barriers to Save Lives and Alleviate Suffering – (David Ostwind – Dissertation)
A Hazard Resilient Future for Naval Station Newport within its Coastal Community: Military Installation Resilience Review for Short-term Preparedness & Long-term Planning
Visualizing Consequences and Perceptions of Risk (Peter Stempel – Dissertation)
Port and Maritime Infrastructure Resilience Projects
This line of research examines how seaports, shipyards, and maritime supply chains account for coastal hazards. Projects range from baseline surveys of global and national industry practices to vulnerability and risk assessments for specific facilities.
Current Projects
Completed Projects
Cruise Industry Considerations of Coastal Hazards Resilience of Cruise Ports: A Baseline Survey (Abigail Murray – Masters Thesis) 
Designing Port Infrastructure for Sea Level Change: A Survey of U.S. Engineers and Designers (Ben Sweeney, Masters Thesis)
Incentives for Closing the Resilience Gap in Port Planning – (Rosemarie Fusco – Dissertation)
Implementing CISA’s IRPF across three case study sites
Working Together to Plan for Resilient Infrastructure in ProvPort, Rhode Island
Navigating Flood Risk in Municipal Urban Planning: A Mental Model Approach – (Kyle McElroy – Dissertation)
U. S. Domestic Shipbuilding and Repair Industry’s Considerations of Coastal Hazards Resiliency: A Baseline Survey (Dave Hill – Masters Thesis)- How do seaports value resilience assessments? Decision making, capacity building, and implementation (Ellis Kalladjian – Masters Thesis
Seaport Vulnerabilities to Climate Change
Climate Critical Resources