About: Deltares has expertise in the policy, science and engineering disciplines that make it possible to live in densely populated and vulnerable areas in deltas, coastal zones and river basins. The combination of specialized consultancy projects and applied research puts Deltares in a unique position to address sustainability issues. To enhance our societal impact, we focus on the Sustainable Development Goals by thinking globally and acting locally.

Proposal: The first step for an innovative approach is to re-think the way we talk about our relationship with the water and the coast. The Project team believes in the need to change the current adaptation that displays a human-centric and nature-detached perspective into a more reciprocal language such as protect each other, host and restore. We need to change our proposals from nature-based solutions to nature-based thinking.

About: ICM is a coastal engineering firm well-known for its innovative, out-of-the-box problem solving strategies. Our innovative roots can be traced back even prior to our twenty years in the Middle East, where we worked on high-profile, crown-level projects, creating one-of-a-kind underwater structures and designing unique islands. These projects have ingrained in us a design philosophy that centers on the belief that anything is possible.

Proposal: Our understanding of the need for the Oceanside Sand Nourishment and Retention Pilot Project is deeply rooted in our own experience of living and working on a long stretch of highly dynamic coastline (Gold Coast, Australia) that is a hub for tourism, surfing and a quickly growing interest in conservation and sustainability. We have learned to work with nature to develop cost effective strategies that have been scalable and transferable to other sites globally.

About: SCAPE is a landscape architecture and urban design practice based in New York, New Orleans, and San Francisco. We design and advocate for the ecologically restorative and socially engaged landscapes, urban environments, and natural infrastructure of the future. We do this through diverse forms of design—built landscapes, planning, visioning, and research—with the ultimate goal of connecting people to their environments.

Proposal: The Coast is Core to the Community: We understand that the beach plays a central role in the identity of Oceanside—known to some as the “hub of Southern California,” the sandy beaches and coastal waves are primary attractors for a diverse group of residents and visitors. Shore tourism, including recreational and competitive surfing, beachgoing, pier walking, and coastal trails are at the core of Oceanside, yet the environmental systems, built infrastructure, and physical materials that support the coast and beaches are eroding and threatened with sea level rise and intensifying storm events. Dry beachfront is transitioning to intertidal conditions, past engineered coastal structures are at risk of failure, and the beachfront requires significant repeat inputs of sand to respond to coastal erosion. Without new ideas or intervention, Oceanside is at risk of losing the environmental asset at the core of its economy and identity—the beach.