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The program provided community leaders with information on URI resources connected to issues that matter to Rhode Islanders in all parts of the state. College leaders said the event shows how important partnerships with state and municipal leaders are to the University\u2019s work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The inaugural CELS showcase celebrated the college\u2019s mission-oriented approach to research, education, and extension, highlighting programs that strengthen Rhode Island\u2019s environment, economy, and quality of life,\u201d CELS Dean Jean VanderGheynst said. \u201cThe event provided a unique opportunity to showcase how University expertise is translated into real-world solutions that benefit communities across the state.”<\/p>\n\n\n
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Faculty at the event were appreciative of the interest in their work. \u201cIt was wonderful to discuss Rhode Island Sea Grant’s work with local cities and towns on issues such as coastal and environmental resilience, energy, and the blue economy with our state legislators and municipal staff,\u201d said presenter Tracey Dalton, director of Rhode Island Sea Grant<\/a>. \u201cThis was a valuable opportunity to share the breadth of work that URI carries out on behalf of Rhode Islanders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n URI faculty and staff members shared information about their research focus in brief \u201clightning talks,\u201d as well as resources in aquaculture, wastewater management, food safety, energy literacy and more.<\/p>\n\n\n Sam Adams, director of URI\u2019s emergency management department and an adjunct professor of marine affairs, spoke about the CHAMP program<\/a> and how appreciative URI is to have the state\u2019s support for the program, which bridges gaps in emergency preparedness. Storms infamously caught Rhode Island by surprise in the last century, but that is not the case now. Thanks to CHAMP, emergency managers statewide are ready if a big storm hits. The CHAMP program can model and predict land and water surge, translating science to predict problems, and deploy technology not available during the state\u2019s memorable 1938 or 1954 storms, which wrought widespread destruction in the state\u2019s coastal communities. CHAMP is now deployed for Rhode Island’s State Emergency Operations Center and other agencies in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCHAMP demonstrates the fundamental value of URI’s land- and sea-grant missions,\u201d Adams said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Charles LaBash, from URI\u2019s Geospatial Extension Program<\/a>, shared the University\u2019s geospatial expertise and resources within the URI Environmental Data Center GIS laboratory. The lab connects the dots in the Rhode Island physical landscape, and provides services that support mapping down to the centimeter level. URI\u2019s Geospatial Extension operates a statewide GIS database that covers everything from aerial imagery to wetlands, offering tools widely used by state agencies and municipalities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some attendees, such as Rep. Jennifer Boylan (Barrington\/East Providence), were interested in getting a better understanding of invasive species, a key research focus at URI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other speakers discussed additional issues that matter to all Rhode Islanders. Jannelle Couret<\/a> described her work in URI\u2019s Vector Ecology and Control Lab, which has a focus on \u201cblood-sucking arthropods.\u201d Couret says her work builds on a legacy of important research at URI\u2014particularly around mosquitoes and ticks\u2014and noted feeling fortunate to be at URI. Her lab is focused on how to manage these species and the risks they bring and has been experimenting with targeted interventions in communities, such as Westerly and Charlestown, to help cut down on the local mosquito population and reduce the burden of mosquito-borne illness in Rhode Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kate Hardesty capped the presentation program by describing how URI Cooperative Extension<\/a> extends University science to industry. Her office oversees three fellowship programs that put URI students into offices, programs and worksites across the state. These workforce-led fellow programs benefit both students and industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese students work on real-world projects,\u201d Hardesty said, \u201cand not only are they changing the world with their work, they are staying here in Rhode Island after graduation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/news\/sites\/16\/2026\/08\/horticulture-683x1024.jpg\")