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Rae Taylor-Burns, Ph.D.

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Rae Taylor-Burns, Ph.D.
Scientist

Rae Taylor-Burns, Ph.D.

Scientist (831) 576-2867 Santa Cruz, CA rtaylor-burns@integral-corp.com

Dr. Rae Taylor-Burns is a coastal engineer and ocean scientist with 10 years of experience participating in vulnerability assessments, risk assessments, and climate change resilience and adaptation plans for coastal and wetland environments. She is skilled in numerical modeling software (Delft3D, SWAN, SWASH, XBeach), database and numerical/statistical computing (Matlab, R, SQL), and geographic information systems (ArcGIS, QGIS). In addition to her modeling and engineering expertise, Dr. Taylor-Burns also is skilled at the translation of science into policy and risk communication.

Coastal Science

Postdoctoral Scholar with Center for Coastal Climate Resilience and the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, Santa Cruz, California Develop tools and approaches for integrating nature-based climate adaptation solutions into land use planning and financial mechanisms. Support development of the Coastal Risk Index web platform, which shows global flood risk and risk reduction benefit of coral reef and mangrove forests. Collaborate with insurers and risk managers to determine leverage points for incorporating habitats’ risk reduction benefits into risk models.
Coastal Scientist with Integral Consulting, Santa Cruz, California Utilize coastal science principles and data to perform climate vulnerability assessments and adaptation plans for clients including the cities of Half Moon Bay, Carmel, and Pacific Grove California. Produce deliverables including system networks, impact maps, reports, and presentations.
Graduate Student Researcher for Coastal Resilience Laboratory, Santa Cruz, California Utilized numerical modeling software (XBeach, Delft3D, SWAN) to assess flood reduction potential of marsh restoration in San Francisco Bay. Utilized socioeconomic data (census data, building inventories, FEMA depth-damage curves) to quantify benefits of risk reduction. Held workshops with local flood managers and partners to get input and present results. Wrote grants and produced required deliverables including quarterly reports, final reports, maps, and manuscripts. Worked collaboratively with researchers from U.S. Geological Survey, U.C. Santa Cruz, and The Nature Conservancy. Served as lead author for four peer reviewed publications and one policy brief. Participated in workshops and other collaboration with risk finance industry representatives.
Graduate Student Researcher for U.S. Geological Survey, Santa Cruz, California Worked with researchers in the Coastal Change Hazards research area to develop public geonarratives depicting ongoing research projects at U.S. Geological Survey. Synthesized complex scientific information into clear, informative, and visually appealing narratives with photographs, diagrams and maps. Created figures for scientific articles. Assisted with field work in Monterey and San Francisco Bay using RTK and performing vegetation surveys.
Researcher for West Coast Ocean Data Portal, Santa Barbara, California Spearheaded analysis as part of a multidisciplinary team to investigate West Coast ocean acidification. Developed assessment of acidification in the California Current based off raw data to determine which MPAs are located in ocean acidification hotspots and how colocation affects ecosystem resilience to acidification. Analyzed gaps in the West Coast ocean acidification monitoring network based off a monitoring inventory.
Project Assistant with Central Coast Wetlands Group, Moss Landing, California Finalized ArcGIS-based sea level rise adaptation plans for Santa Cruz, Capitola, Santa Cruz County and Monterey County. Created metadata for all layers and summary documents for each municipality. Completed ArcGIS based economic analyses on cost of at risk infrastructure for the City of Santa Cruz. Authored the 40 page 2017 Climate Change Chapter of the Monterey County Integrated Regional Water Management Plan and presented findings to 20 municipal water resource managers at countywide meeting. Led and completed several other research projects including a treatment wetland literature summary and a synthesis of California’s lagoon breaching permit conditions.
Research Assistant with National Seashore North Atlantic Coastal Laboratory, Truro, Massachusetts Assisted with data collection and project planning for a salt marsh vulnerability assessment. Collected grass decomposition data in Cape Cod salt marshes to measure effect of relative sea level rise on salt marshes in comparison to the rate of sediment creation from decomposition.

Taylor-Burns R., M.W. Beck, and B. Reguero. Hybrid infrastructure extends the lifespan of a regional levee system. In preparation.

Taylor-Burns R., and B. Reguero. Exploring the limitations of marsh restoration for risk reduction. In ASCE Inspire 2023. pp. 583-593. American Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, VA.

Taylor-Burns R., C. Lowrie, B. Tehranirad, J. Lowe, L. Erikson, P. Barnard, B. Reguero, and M.W. Beck 2024. The value of marsh restoration for climate adaptation in an urban estuary. Sci. Rep. 14:6856. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-57474-4.

Taylor-Burns, R.M. 2023. A numerical modeling approach to assess opportunity for nature-based climate adaptation in California, Dissertation. UC Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA. 165 pp.

Taylor-Burns R., K. Nederhoff, J. Lacy, and P. Barnard. 2023. The influence of vegetated marshes on wave transformation in a sheltered estuary. Coastal Engineering 184.

Taylor-Burns R., S. Heard, and M.W. Beck. 2022. Valuing the flood reduction benefits of marshes in the San Francisco Bay. Policy Brief. The Nature Conservancy.

Taylor-Burns R., C. Cochran, K. Ferron, M. Harris, C. Thomas, A. Fredston, and B. Kendall. 2020. Locating gaps in the California Current Ocean Acidification Monitoring Network. Science Progress 103(3): 1–27.

Taylor-Burns R., and C. Storlazzi. Coastal change in Alaska geonarrative. June 2020. https://wim.usgs.gov/geonarrative/cch-alaska/

Taylor-Burns R., A. Gibbs, and L. Erikson. The role of U.S. coral reefs in coastal protection geonarrative. June 2020. https://wim.usgs.gov/geonarrative/cch-reefprot/

Taylor-Burns R., J. Finzi Hart, and A. Foxrover. Coastal storms geonarrative. June 2020. https://wim.usgs.gov/geonarrative/cch-floodfut/

2017 Climate Change Chapter – Monterey County Integrated Regional Water Management Plan.

Taylor-Burns R. 2014. Cape wind: An obvious choice for a younger generation. Cape Cod Today 19 August. Op-ed.

Organizing Committee, Advancing Financing for Nature-Based Adaptation. Santa Cruz, CA. April 2024.

Invited attendee, The Nature Conservancy’s Science Capacity Building Workshop: Facilitation, Engagement and Decision Science Rise. Boulder, CA. May 2023.

Invited speaker, California State Parks Foundation Insider Speaker Series on Sea Level Rise. Zoom. March 2023.

Organizing Committee, Adapting Coastal Cities to Sea Level Rise in N. America. Santa Cruz, CA. September 2022.

Organizing Committee, Science for Nature and People Partnerships: Advancing Coastal Defenses. Santa Cruz, CA. July 2022.

Presenter, The American Society for Civil Engineers, Infrastructure Innovation & Adaptation for a Sustainable & Resilient World. Arlington, VA. November 2023.

Presenter, The American Shore and Beach Preservation Association Meeting. Providence, RI. October 2023.

Presenter, UC Santa Cruz Ocean Sciences Department Seminar. Santa Cruz, CA. March 2023.

Presenter, 2022 Ocean Sciences Meeting. Zoom. March 2022.

Presenter, 2019 Young Coastal Scientist and Engineers Conference – Americas. Corvallis, OR. August 2019.

Presenter, 2019 Climate Communicator Showcase. Santa Cruz, CA. April 2019.

Presenter, Ocean Sciences Meeting. Portland, OR. February 2018.

Presenter, West Coast Regional Planning Body Annual Meeting. Long Beach, CA. December 2017.

Presenter, Monterey County Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWMP) Meeting. Salinas, CA. July 2017.

Dissertation Quarter Fellowship (2023, $10,000)

STARS Scholarship (2022 and 2023, $3,000)

ARCS Foundation Scholarship (2022, $10,000)

Women’s National Farm and Garden Scholarship (2020, $1,500)

California Ocean Protection Council Grant (2020, with Coastal Resilience Laboratory; $240,000)

The Nature Conservancy (2020, with Coastal Resilience Lab; $80,000)

Norris Center for Natural History Art/Science Residence (2020, $2,000)

California Sea Grant Graduate Research Fellowship ($80,000)

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (with Bren School masters thesis team; $10,000)

James S. Bower Foundation Fellowship (with Bren School masters thesis team; $1,400)

Bren School Summer Internship Fellowship ($2000)

Yale Environmental Summer Fellowship (2013, 2014; $2,000)

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