A Conversation on Coastal Resilience with Rachael Freeman and Claire Martin

Resilience has quickly become the newest and latest buzzword, but what do we really mean when we talk about coastal resilience? What does coastal resilience look like here on Nantucket?
Join Rachael Freeman and Claire Martin as they share a conversation to explore coastal resilience approaches globally, regionally, and locally. The conversation includes an introduction to an adaptive and visionary project here on Nantucket: the design concept for a Washington Street Resilience Framework Plan. This program is part of the Food for Thought Lecture Series at the Nantucket Whaling Museum.
Rachael Freeman has worked in the environmental field for over 20 years. She is currently the Director of Environmental & Agricultural Resources for the Nantucket Land Bank where she oversees and participates in planning, project management, and permitting across a wide range of environmental topics. She may also be recognized by her various publications and reports, with subject matters ranging from habitat management to phenology. Rachael grew up visiting her grandparents on Nantucket, and occasionally summered on the island. She moved to Nantucket for a seasonal job with the Nantucket Conservation Foundation in 2003 and has been here ever since. Currently, she and her husband have three children, two dogs, fish, a bearded dragon, and a turtle - it’s a full house! Prior to working at the Land Bank, Rachael was the Research Supervisor at the Nantucket Conservation Foundation and owned and operated Laurentide Environmental, a small environmental consulting company. Rachael holds a Masters of Science in Plant Biology from the University of New Hampshire.
Claire Martin was a seasonal Nantucket resident during her undergraduate years at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont where she earned her degree in Media Studies, Journalism and Digital Arts. She’s lived on and off the island since 2012, returning in the spring of 2020 to join the ReMain Nantucket team as Project Manager. Through her work at ReMain, Claire seeks to identify and foster opportunities for community-led coastal resilience collaborations and oversees day-to-day communications for ReMain Nantucket and ReMain Ventures to effectively communicate ReMain’s mission, programs and specific initiatives with the Nantucket community and beyond. For the last three years, she has been managing the Envision Resilience Challenge program, a semester-long design studio that connects interdisciplinary teams from leading universities with coastal communities to envision adaptive and creative solutions to sea level rise. Prior to joining ReMain, Claire served as Communications Manager for NatureBridge in California. With campuses in five national parks, NatureBridge’s mission is to connect young people to the wonder and science of the natural world to inspire self-discovery and stewardship of the planet.