This coastal tribe has a radical vision for fighting sea-level rise in the Hamptons
[...]
On Shinnecock territory, coastal areas represent such a large portion of their land that they will feel every inch they lose. Even without storms, Gavin Cohen, the Shinnecock Environmental Department's natural resource manager, estimates that at least 7 percent and 15 percent of the current Shinnecock territory will be completely lost to water by 2050 and 2100, respectively. While all of Long Island, including Southampton Village, is projected to lose land, many of these communities have more land to fall back on, not to mention more resources to deal with climate change.
[...]
Smith, who has worked for the tribe for nearly 20 years, says she understands that some people may never leave, even as the waters reach their door. But she believes it is her job to prepare everyone for what's coming and give them the tools to make choices.
To do that, Smith has partnered with Malgosia Madajewicz, a Columbia University economist who is running a three-year study of community adaptation to coastal flooding. The study consists of four community workshops and is designed to help the tribe develop a multifaceted response to flooding.
After just one workshop, Madajewicz says she is already finding valuable lessons in the Shinnecock approach. "They're really planning for a few generations, whereas in other communities, there's often a time horizon that revolves more around political cycles and is much shorter," Madajewicz said. "If we have a hope of rescuing life from this crisis, protecting it into the future, we have to lengthen our planning horizons."
[...]