Stanley R. Riggs

Stanley R. Riggs (born May 20, 1938) is an American coastal geologist and professor. In 1967, Riggs received his Ph.D. from the University of Montana and joined the faculty at East Carolina University as an assistant professor of geology. He retired in 1999, but returned to the university as a Distinguished Research Professor His service on a United Nations project involving the utilization of resources in developing countries earned Riggs the O. Max Gardner Award in 1983. In 2013, Riggs founded North Carolina Land of Water (NCLOW) alongside long-time collaborator Dorothea V. Ames. The organization is dedicated to sustaining North Carolina's coast through public education and efforts to inform development.

Early life and education Riggs was born in Watertown, Wisconsin and grew up in the Green Bay area. He developed a passion for geology and marine biology and pursued the subjects post-secondarily. As a boy, in Wisconsin, Riggs explored bird migrations, swamps and lakes with his younger brother, John. Riggs received his B.S. from Beloit College (1960), M.A. from Dartmouth College (1962), and his Ph.D. from the University of Montana (1967), before becoming a professor at ECU. He would spend 55 years on the faculty. Drowning the North Carolina Coast: Sea-Level Rise and Estuarine Dynamics (2003) The Battle for North Carolina's Coast: Evolutionary History, Present Crisis, and Vision for the Future (2011) Cape Lookout National Seashore: Paradigm for a Coastal System Ethic (2025)

Other Riggs continues to contribute to academic literature and has been recently published in journals like PALAIOS. Some of his most referenced works present findings on barrier shore face morphology and phosphorite systems.

Awards and recognition For his work on a United Nations project, Riggs received the Oliver Max Gardner Award in 1983. This is awarded for contributions to the welfare of the human race. In 1986, he received a Queen Elizabeth II Senior Research Fellowship, awarded by the Australian Minister for Science. In 1989, Riggs was named a Geological Society of America Fellow and, in 1994, was recognized as a Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences distinguished professor. and the North Carolina Award for Science (2022).

Contributions In addition to his work at ECU, Riggs collaborated with scholars at universities across North Carolina as an adjunct professor. His service on numerous panels concerning state issues has helped to shape policy and protect North Carolina's coastlines. He served on the Coastal Resources Commission's Science Panel and the Legislative Commission on Global Climate Change.