The MACH summer session is another avenue for MACH students and postdoctoral associates to receive professional training and develop skills. Since first being offered in the summer of 2023, four MACH summer sessions have been held, providing week-long, in-situ experiences that bring together MACH students, postdoctoral associates, stakeholders, science translators, and other researchers to learn about the diverse challenges associated with studying and managing coastal climate impacts.

Featured below are materials from our 2025 summer session which was designed to foster meaningful dialogue around collaborative research and to prepare participants to extend their work beyond traditional academic pathways.

Participants took part in a storytelling exercise, supported by the worksheet, "Broader Impacts Identity: Finding your impact 'sweet spot'", designed to help them connect their research to societal needs.

Facilitators then led a group discussion, guiding participants through the worksheet questions and pausing throughout to encourage participants to share their responses aloud.

Building on this foundation, the group then explored methods and tools for communicating and sharing their research.

Then, participants were asked to consider how best to communicate their work and measure its impact. The  worksheet, "Bridging Boundaries: Defining Success in Applied Research" was developed to help participants identify what success in extending their research beyond academic pathways might look like.

Upon completing the activity, participants reflected on whether they had: (1) specific shared goals, such as information to communicate, end users of their data, and dissemination methods; and (2) broader shared goals, such as finding solutions to climate change and increasing awareness of climate-related issues.