by Madelyn Anderson – “Don’t fall out of love with freshwater.” That’s what my colleagues told me as I announced I’d be spending a week in North Carolina, catching waves and getting to know coastal communities.
While my summer has been spent diving deeper into Wisconsin’s waters, during the school year I work for Wisconsin Sea Grant. Sea Grant is an organization under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) with branches in every coastal and Great Lakes state, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
When they offered for me to join a community-engaged field experience, I couldn’t resist. I expected days in the sun, exciting new sea life, and fellow participants passionate about water. What I didn’t expect was to see glimpses of the Great Lakes in ocean waves.
Yes, I had heard the tale of french explorer Samuel de Champlain arriving at Lake Huron in the 1600s and declaring it a “sweetwater sea”. But I hadn’t realized just how deep the similarities ran. Sitting in the sand collecting shells, my new Atlantic Ocean coast friends joked that we probably don’t find treasure like this on Midwest shores. When I told them about the rich history of hunting for the fossil Petoskey stone on Lake Michigan, their eyes lit up.
Their excitement continued as we visited a wetland and I pointed out pitcher plants, a plant also found in Wisconsin bogs. We bonded over the noisy birds and summer sweat that accompanies each of our bodies of water, with stories from Minnesota to New York to Hawaii interweaving. Each ecosystem was unique, but tied together by an aquatic spirit.
Our love for water uniting us, we headed further into the coast for our final days of the trip. It was there in a brightly lit building on the beach where we met with North Carolina climatologist Dr. Kathie Dello.
She spoke of her community’s concerns around flooding, acidification, and rising temperatures. Her voice grew increasingly urgent as we heard stories of people’s relationship with the sea changing – whether it had washed their homes away or had grown too hot to safely visit anymore. I listened with my peers as we learned about the importance of their ocean, all the things it could provide and take away.
It was then I thought about our lakes the most. About the people depending on them. The truth is, Wisconsin’s waters are changing too. We see it with our own eyes, algal blooms intensifying, docks being washed out after extreme rain events, signs reading “don’t drink.”
Sea Grant recognizes that these climate change effects cross boundaries, with its mission to focus not only on sustainable use and conservation but “resilient and inclusive communities.”
As the saltwater dried from my skin and I headed back to the lake I call home, I couldn’t help but feel different. From the lake to the sea, I know there is a community of water supporting me, and I’m excited to be part of the diverse movement to protect it.
