SBU’s Climate Innovation: From Local Solutions to Global Impact

In the face of accelerating climate change, a remarkable transformation is taking place at Stony Brook University. Across Long Island and around the world, Stony Brook’s scientists, engineers, community leaders and entrepreneurs are doing more than just confronting environmental challenges — they’re discovering opportunities for innovation, economic development and climate resilience.

From local initiatives to global breakthroughs, Stony Brook appreciates its visionaries who refuse to see climate change solely as a threat, recognizing it as a powerful catalyst for reimagining how we live, work and interact with the environment. Their stories represent the foundation of a more sustainable, equitable and prosperous future to build a better planet.

Legacy of Shinnecock Bay

Ellen Pikitch, endowed professor of ocean conservation science and executive director of the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science, launched the Shinnecock Bay Restoration Program in 2012, focusing on improving water quality and eliminating harmful brown tides in the Shinnecock Bay. By building oyster reefs, planting juvenile clams and seagrass, the project enhances the bay’s natural filtration system, eliminating nitrogen pollution from nearby aging septic systems and reducing harmful algal blooms. In 2022, Shinnecock Bay was named a Global Hope Spot by Mission Blue —  the first in New York and one of only a few on the East Coast — for its ecological significance and successful restoration progress.

“The problems that we’re facing in our environment today, people are going to have to come up with solutions. The more that we can work together, understand one another, be on the same page, and accept different philosophies and different approaches, the better off we’ll be,” Pikitch said at the time of the announcement.

The Hope Spot designation amplifies the global significance of the Shinnecock Bay Restoration Program. As climate change threatens coastal ecosystems worldwide, Shinnecock Bay serves as a model for estuarine restoration, demonstrating that local conservation efforts can have far-reaching environmental benefits. By successfully reversing environmental damage, Shinnecock Bay exemplifies how scientific innovation and community involvement can restore degraded marine ecosystems and inspire global conservation efforts.

A major effort within the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), the program focuses on shellfish restoration, introducing millions of hard clams and oysters to filter excess nitrogen and improve water quality. Christopher Gobler, SoMAS’s endowed chair of coastal ecology and conservation, has said eelgrass meadows are replanted to provide essential habitats for marine life and stabilize sediments. Water quality monitoring ensures continuous assessment of improvements, while community engagement involves volunteers, students and local organizations in conservation efforts. 

To address pollution at its source, the program also promotes nutrient management strategies, advocating for better wastewater treatment and sustainable land-use practices. 

Empowerment Through Science Communication

As Stony Brook University takes on its leadership role as the anchor institution for the New York Climate Exchange, a crucial element for its success will be the continuing ability of its researchers and partners to effectively communicate complex scientific information to a wide range of audiences. This is where the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science plays a pivotal role.

For 15 years, The Alda Center has partnered with departments and affiliated institutions of Stony Brook and SUNY, as well as with universities and organizations worldwide, to enable experts to share the significance of their work accurately and effectively with audiences. The Center helps these experts generate support, strengthen collaboration and encourage public engagement with science. And it does so with The Alda Method©, a unique blend of social science research, communication strategy and applied improvisation. 

“As future science communication leaders, students of these programs learn how to build bridges between science and society through engaging and empathetic exchanges with lasting impact,” said Laura Lindenfeld, executive director of the Alda Center for Communicating Science and dean of the School of Communication and Journalism.

In addition to providing programming for scientists and researchers, the Center and its educators are an integral part of the Advanced Graduate Certificate in Science Communication and the Masters of Science in Science Communication programs at the Stony Brook School of Communication and Journalism. The Masters program offers two areas of concentration: General Science Communication and Climate Communication. 

Also at Stony Brook, the Alda Center collaborates with university STEM professors to support Stony Brook’s Discovery Prize and Science on Stage – events that are centered around communicating science in compelling and meaningful ways. This past fall, Science on Stage was dedicated to climate change. Playwrights were paired with Stony Brook scientists to present plays based on their research, including Kevin Reed, chief climate scientist for The New York Climate Exchange, Stony Brook’s associate provost for climate and sustainability programming, and professor in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS); Christine Gilbert, assistant professor of climate communication with a joint position in the School of Communication and Journalism and SoMAS; and Elizabeth Watson, associate professor in the Department of Ecology & Evolution.

“The thing that I find so compelling about Science on Stage, or this type of intersection between science and theater, is that it pulls together people who are interested in theater but never thought of themselves as science people with scientists who never thought of themselves as theater people,” Gilbert said.  “These two disparate groups that normally wouldn’t find themselves in conversation with each other begin to think differently about a topic.”

“We need people to feel like the things that they do, in regards to climate change, have a meaningful impact. We call that response efficacy,” she added. 

Learning Lessons from Kenya’s Turkana Basin

The Turkana Basin Institute (TBI), located in Nairobi, Kenya, was founded by Richard E. Leakey, renowned paleoanthropologist who was a professor at Stony Brook University. 

Today, the Turkana Basin is a key site for understanding past climates and geological transformations. “Our primary focus of research is paleontology, geology and history. Because of that, we have this incredibly deep view through time of climate change,” said Institute Director Dino Martins.

TBI scientists study lake sediments, volcanic ash layers and fossilized plants to reconstruct environmental changes over millions of years. By examining these ancient records, researchers gain insights into how climate shifts influenced human evolution and migration patterns.

“The climate work has primarily looked at pre-history,” said Martins, a Kenyan entomologist and evolutionary biologist. “We’re trying to understand: did animals get bigger and smaller? Did they migrate? Were they more diverse ecosystems or less diverse than they are today?”

Additionally, TBI conducts climate and water research, assessing modern environmental changes that impact communities in the region. Studies of Lake Turkana, the world’s largest desert lake, help predict future challenges related to drought, desertification and resource management. “We are trying our best to be as sustainable as possible,” Martins said. “So the entire campus runs on solar power, which I’m very proud of having achieved.”

The Turkana Basin is also rich in fossils dating back millions of years. It has been the site of some of the most significant discoveries in human evolution, including fossils of early hominins such as Australopithecus anamensis, Homo habilis and Homo erectus. Nariokotome — or The Turkana Boy, a nearly complete skeleton of Homo erectus — was discovered in this region by Kamoya Kimeu who was a part of Leakey’s team in 1984. This discovery aided in the research pertaining to the development of the ability to walk bipedally in homo erectus.

TBI also plays a crucial role in training local and international students in fields such as paleoanthropology, geology and conservation. The Turkana Basin Field School provides hands-on training to students, allowing them to participate in real excavations and research.

Martins emphasizes the importance of collaboration with the Daasanach and Turkana people, incorporating their holistic understanding of climate in science. “Students and scientists come and work together with communities, learn from each other, but more importantly, see that knowledge around climate must have indigenous voices,” he said. “Whether they’re a farmer, scientist, local community member, teacher or even a young person, everybody experiences the effects of climate and climate change.” 

America’s First Offshore Wind Farm

Harnessing the power of the wind with offshore turbines is a promising form of renewable energy to meet the growing needs of New York, said Ali Khosronejad, associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering. “If you look at the power output of different turbines, starting from, let’s say 1990, in the US and around the globe, you can see that the wind turbines are growing in size and power output,” Khosronejad said. 

The greatest experiment for his department and students to study is The Block Island Wind Farm, located off the coast of Rhode Island and America’s first offshore wind farm. Developed by Deepwater Wind, the project became fully operational in December 2016, marking a significant milestone in the country’s transition to renewable energy. With five turbines generating a total of 30 megawatts of power, the wind farm provides electricity to Block Island and the surrounding areas, reducing dependence on fossil fuels.

The Block Island Wind Farm replaced the island’s previous reliance on diesel generators, which burned nearly one million gallons of fuel per year. By harnessing offshore wind energy, the farm significantly reduces carbon emissions, improving air quality and lowering energy costs for residents. Additionally, offshore wind projects slated for the Atlantic Ocean create hundreds of jobs during its construction — offering opportunities for Stony Brook students interested in climate jobs for the future — and continue to support the local economy through maintenance and operational roles.

To date, New York has deployed millions of dollars in funding to Stony Brook University and other colleges across the state for workforce development programs that prepare students for careers in the emerging offshore wind industry.

For Khosronejad, his research also focuses on hydrokinetic energy — generating electricity from the movement of tides and waves. He said, “A combination of different forms of renewable energy can definitely replace other [non-renewable] sources,” which are major contributors to worsening impacts of climate change.

Earlier this year, Khosronejad’s team was awarded $12 million from the Atlantic Marine Energy Center (AMEC), a section of the Department of Energy, to advance marine energy.  

— Antonio Mochmann, Fatima Sowid

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