The University of Windsor

Coastal Research Group

About Us

Our Focus

The Coastal Research Group at the University of Windsor is focused on sediment transport and nearshore morphodynamics with a focus on beach-dune interaction, and barrier island response to sea level rise. We also conduct research on the physical and social dimensions of the rip current hazard, with field sites along the Great Lakes and in the Maritimes of Canada as well as Costa Rica. Our research involves a combination of fieldwork, remotely sensed data, geophysics and machine learning.

Research Opportunities

Join our research group! We are always looking to recruit talented undergraduate and graduate students interested in coastal and marine research. Send an email to learn more about research opportunities.

uwincoastalresearch@gmail.com
Science

Our Team

Chris Houser

Chris Houser

Dean of Science

Professor, School of the Environment

View CV
Alex Smith

Alex Smith

Post-doctoral Fellow

PhD, University of Ulster

View CV
Jenny Gharib

Jenny Gharib

Masters of Earth Science - Barrier Breaching 2022

Summer Locknick

Summer Locknick

Masters of Earth Science - Rip Currents 2020

Brianna Lunardi

Brianna Lunardi

Masters of Earth Science - Alongshore Coupling of the Ecogeomorphology of a Beach Dune System 2021

Valerie Morin

Valerie Morin

Brent Vlodarchyk

Brent Vlodarchyk

Masters of Earth Science - Predicting Landslides 2020

Phillipe Wernette

Phillipe Wernette

Postdoctoral Fellow 2017-2020, Now: USGS

RESEARCH PROJECTS

Beach Safety

Collaborative research projects related to the physical, social and behavioral dimensions of beach safety in the Great Lakes, Maritimes, Gulf Coast and Costa Rica.

Example Publications:

  • Economic Impact of Drowning in the Great Lakes Region of North America
  • Correspondence of beach user management, lifesaving strategies and rip currents: Implications for Beach Management
  • Impact of COVID-19 on drowning patterns in the Great Lakes
  • The psychology of beach users: importance of confirmation bias, action, and intention to improving rip current safety
  • Public Perceptions of a Rip Current Hazard Education Program: ‘Break the Grip of the Rip!’.
  • Spatial and temporal variation of surf drownings in the Great Lakes: 2010-2017

Beach-dune interaction

Focus on the exchange of sediment amongst the nearshore, beach and dune and the impacts on barrier dynamics. Projects along the north shore of PEI and at Padre Island Texas.

Example Publications:

  • Is there a representative and scale-invariant beach-dune profile?
  • Morphodynamic Systems: Beach and Dune Interaction
  • Alongshore controls on the response and recovery of a beach-dune system to Hurricane Dorian at Brackley Beach, Prince Edward Island
  • Long-range dependence in framework geology: Implications for barrier island resiliency
  • Influence of a spatially complex framework geology on island geomorphology
  • Scale dependent behavior of the foredune

Experiential Learning and Student Support

Assessment of experiential learning and support programs for students.

Example Publications:

  • Awareness, use and value of student support programs through the lens of science students, faculty, and staff.
  • Student perceptions on the benefits and barriers to study abroad.
  • Concordance (or discordance) between students and staff/faculty perceptions of student stress in science

Analytical reasoning, machine learning and semantic modeling

Studies to examine how expert-based knowledge can be used for mapping barriers and predicting process-form relationships.

Example Publications:

  • The Field Geomorphologist in a time of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
  • Fuzzy Cognitive Modelling (FCM) in Coastal Geomorphology.
  • Spatial frequency analysis and information synthesis for understanding coastal barriers.
  • Crowd-sourced identification of the beach-dune interface.

Coastal Monitoring

The Coastal Research Group manages Coastsnap Canada and COASTIE citizen science programs. These programs are part of the the global CoastSnap Community Beach Monitoring movement that began in Australia in 2017.

Websites:

  • Coastsnap Canada (Under Development)
  • COASTIE

Shoreline Change in the Great Lakes

Surveys of shoreline change and barrier dynamics in the Great Lakes with a focus on the Point Pelee Foreland.

Example Publications:

  • Barrier Beaches and Breaches: Historical Changes on the Point Pelee Foreland
  • Perspectives on Great Lakes Coastal Management: A Case Study of the Point Pelee Foreland, Canada

General Inquiries