SJTU-SOO 2025 summer school is open for applications!

Coastal geology aims to study the characteristics, structure, and origin of the geological materials that constitute the coastal transition zone – an area spanning the coastline to the continental shelf – and places special emphasis on the active processes that occur in this dynamic environment. Today, the foundations of coastal geology as a science are firmly established, with clear links to other related fields like marine geology, coastal engineering and coastal ecology. This discipline is becoming increasingly important for informing coastal managers and policy makers to develop best practice strategies for balancing expanding human activities with coastal protection measures  worldwide. The current trend is that many of the problems raised by “natural coast–human interaction” must be resolved by using an integrated coastal zone management approach that connects a number of Earth science, engineering, and social science disciplines where coastal geology plays an important role. The purpose of this summer school is therefore to introduce undergraduate and first-year graduate students to the basic principles of coastal geology and is organized around the central theme of “linking extreme storms to coastal climate change” that will provide students with an up-to-date view of this multidisciplinary science. During this two-week course, students will learn theory, methods and interpretation techniques to understand modern coastal processes and their connections to the geologic history of the coastal transition zone through an outcome based education approach. An important goal of this course is to understand how to solve real world problems and to improve communication skills. Students will design a field experiment that they will study giving them an opportunity to become as leading expert through a series of in-class group discussions and activities working with their peers and the instructors to gain feedback that will culminate in a final presentation and short project paper.