Rusty Feagin

Rusty Feagin is a Professor at Texas A&M University, holding the COALS Professorship in Rangeland Conservation. He is affiliated with the Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology and the Department of Ocean Engineering. His research focuses on how living materials moderate and respond to coastal erosion, translating findings into actionable coastal restoration and engineering projects. He has over 100 publications in top journals like Nature, Science, and PNAS, and his work has been featured by NPR and the New York Times.

Dr. Feagin earned his B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and his Ph.D. in Rangeland Ecology and Management from Texas A&M University. His expertise spans coastal ecology, geomorphology, and engineering, with a strong emphasis on ecosystem resilience and sustainable management of coasts.

His research interests prioritize understanding coastal dynamics, including dune erosion, salt marsh restoration, blue carbon sequestration, and the integration of AI into ecological systems. He explores how vegetation and structural cores (e.g., rocky, geotextile) enhance dune stability during storms and investigates the impacts of hydrology, salinity, and climate change on coastal environments.

Feagin has been awarded the Robert Dean Coastal Academic Award and Texas’s highest environmental honor, along with a State Senate proclamation. He contributed to the US National Greenhouse Gas Inventory and served as a Visiting Fellow/Scholar at institutions like the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, as well as Oregon State University.

His grants include collaborative NSF-funded studies on dune erosion physics and NASA’s Blue Carbon Monitoring System. He advises on hydrological restoration projects (e.g., Anahuac Wetlands) and leads teams using advanced tools like Delft3D modeling and UAV photogrammetry for erosion quantification. His lab actively engages in fieldwork at sites like Matagorda Peninsula and Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge.