Above The Marsh

Above The Marsh utilizes a living shoreline composed of marshland ecosystems to fight against rising sea levels and erosion along the coast of Sunset Beach, North Carolina. A living shoreline is a composition of coastal plants and sediments that filter water, create natural wave barriers for shores and attract local marine life. These ecosystems become a natural shoreline barrier than typical bulkheads used to protect against erosion. In turn, this creates psychological benefits for people in the area through an attractive and low maintenance green space to occupy.

Sunset Beach, North Carolina, has become a major vacationing area along the Intra Coastal Waterway that experiences massive population fluctuations throughout the year. Over time, millions of tourists visit an area of a depleted community that lacks diversity in population and resources with the main attraction, the beach, losing ground each year due to flooding and erosion. Above The Marsh seeks to solve these issues through maintaining the coastline, increasing natural ecosystems and bringing a larger demographic through a hostel work exchange and environmentally friendly activities that can occur on a protected site.

2023 AIA COTE Top Ten for Students Competition

2023 SARA NY Design Awards