Susan Stout first fell in love with Chincoteague as a visitor, spending family vacations on the island for about two decades. She purchased a home in 2017 and became a full-time resident a few years later.
“It really reminded me of the values of small-town America,” she said. “I grew up a lot with the common good, and you really see that here.”
Stout was also struck by the natural beauty of the island. It’s located at the northeastern tip of Virginia’s Eastern Shore, shielded from the Atlantic Ocean only by the adjoining barrier island now serving as a wildlife refuge.
But the same natural features that drew her to the island are under threat. Climate change is driving higher sea levels and rainfall. Erosion, sinking land and continued development compound the issues.
Ninety-eight percent of properties in Chincoteague are at risk of flooding over the next 30 years, according to data from the First Street Foundation.
Stout said she’s seen flooding increase and land recede.
“I live in a home that's on pilings just off the marsh,” she said. "It's not lost on me that things are changing. Those are some concerns that I think we need to talk about as a community.”
Stout contributed to a new project that aims to spark those conversations.
The Chincoteague Shore Strong Photovoice exhibition displays images taken by residents around the island to capture what they most want to protect in the face of growing environmental challenges.
“It made me really think about questions like, ‘What is important to me here, and what do I want to see preserved for the next 50 years, 100 years into the future?’” Stout said.
The project is led by the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission, which works with officials across the Eastern Shore.
Rita Chandler, a coastal resource planner, said the commission received a small grant from Virginia’s Coastal Zone Management program to work on flood resilience issues.
Flooding is a problem plaguing the entire Eastern Shore. Chandler said the group chose Chincoteague as the grant’s focus because of its unique culture, tight-knit community and economy based on a mix of tourism and full-time residents.
Before exploring flood mitigation projects, the commission wanted to learn more about what exactly the island’s residents hope to preserve.
The concept grew from the idea that a picture can be worth 1,000 words, she said.
“You can talk a lot about things that you want, things that are going wrong, things that need improvement,” Chandler said. “But when you see that captured in a photograph, it kind of hits home to you more.”
The planning commission held a series of workshops to explain the program’s premise and process. Participants had a few weeks to shoot their favorite spots and write brief summaries explaining what those places mean to them.
Resident Bettina Dembek captured images, including a turtle crossing a road, meant to depict the concept of “living on island time.”
Dembek is originally from Germany and lived around the U.S. before moving to Chincoteague a dozen years ago.
“I said, ‘This is it. I found the place,’ ” she said. “And if I move again, it's going to be either to a funeral home or overseas.”
Dembek said the island is a “perfect mix” of small-town charm, cultural diversity and access to nature. She now worries about threats such as flooding, saltwater intrusion and invasive species.
She sees the project as a positive step toward addressing those threats, including by getting more people involved.
“It's not about you're right and I'm wrong, or convincing people that this is the right way to look at it, but to see there's so many different perspectives,” Dembek said. “So where do we find the common ground?”
The exhibition debuted last month, decorating the walls of the Island Community House with dozens of photos, including of marshland, osprey, ice cream shops, beach sunsets, fishing boats and traditions such as the Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade and Pony Swim.
The photos are grouped into broad categories such as wildlife, industry, island life and Main Street.
Standing by the “resiliency and sustainability” section, Stout pointed to one of her images from the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge.
“Everyone loves the wild ponies here, but the southern herd’s grazing land is subject to more and more flooding.”
Sherry Dudas, a regional planner with the Eastern Shore commission, said she hopes local government officials will look to residents’ photos for guidance on how to prioritize projects.
“The way that we regulate the environment has typically been through bureaucrats meeting, and some people are not comfortable speaking in public,” Dudas said. “With the photographs, it is an emotional connection that you create with people. And I feel like workshops like this can really help move the ball forward in terms of what we're going to do to mitigate risk and preserve our cultural and natural resources.”
The Chincoteague Shore Strong Photovoice exhibit has moved to the Museum of Chincoteague Island and will be on display through Dec. 13.
