Congressman Bobby Scott, U.S. House of Representative for Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District, with Wetlands Watch Staff Posing in Front of the Hilyard Robinson Room at YouthFest ‘26
On Saturday July 11, 2026 at West Hampton Community Center, Wetlands Watch joined the Greater Aberdeen Community Coalition (GACC) in their fifth annual YouthFest ‘26 to put on a multigenerational event to benefit the greater Aberdeen community. The event featured a host of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM) focused interactive games, activities and competitions, and entrepreneurship intended to engage youth in civic engagement and philanthropy. This fun and entertaining “marketplace” had a space where “kidpreneurs” could buy and sell their products, featured a historical story time, and addressed community issues in an interactive and engaging way. Wetlands Watch sponsored the Hillyard Robinson Room, named for the architect who designed the Aberdeen Gardens New Deal settlement, focused on community flood issues. Wetlands Watch’s involvement in YouthFest allowed us to showcase the nature-based flood protection strategies developed by students from Virginia Tech Landscape Architecture (VT LAR) & The Coastal Community Design Collaborative (CCDC) is a joint partnership between Old Dominion University (ODU) and Hampton University (HU) students. This is part of our larger mission to develop neighborhood resilience and climate-adaptation strategies for this special community with a rich history and critical environmental assets.
The room was designed and hosted by Amari Ross, Neighborhood Resilience Project Manager, and Shereen Hughes, Ambassador, of Wetlands Watch. It featured four stations that engaged Aberdeen youth in different ways, encouraging their creativity, competition, and innovation when considering their neighborhood and the future they’d want to see. Kids and adults voted on their favorite Community-focused designs from the 2023 VT LAR & CCDC students in a game of “This or That” after listening intently to the project descriptions by Amari and Shereen. They engaged with an Interactive 3D Resilience Plan Model created by VT LAR students in 2026 for the Paula Maria Village project area of the greater Aberdeen community. They competed against one another for prizes in a LEGO building competition to replicate homes in Aberdeen Gardens with added elements of natural infrastructure, such as vegetation, rain gardens, rooftop gardens, etc. Prizes totalling $1,750 were awarded for 1st-3rd place winners as judged by attendants of the competition and volunteers from GACC and Hampton University Architecture Alumni. Stephanie Letourneau, Community Science & Outreach Staff, also hosted a Catch the King Sea Level Rise App demo to engage participants in our annual CTK event.
YouthFest furthers Wetlands Watch’s mission of connecting Aberdeen residents with flood resilience experts to ensure that projects to reduce flood risk reflect community members, local priorities and lived experiences. The YouthFest created a space for multigenerational Aberdeen community members to have input on adaptive landscape designs that protect lives, livelihoods and ecosystems, while promoting the need for flood resilient community adaptations. Through giving youth the opportunity to vote on community nature-based landscape designs and challenging them to build their own climate resilient future, Wetlands Watch encouraged their creativity and innovation, sparking their passion in nature and their environment. Wetlands Watch is honored to sustain thriving partnerships with neighborhood groups in Aberdeen, including AGHCA (Aberdeen Gardens Historical Civic Association) and the GACC. We’d especially like to thank Shelton Tucker, co-founder of GACC and one of the first partners of Wetlands Watch in the Aberdeen area, for inviting us to participate in YouthFest. We are proud to be a part of inspiring and involving the youth in the communities climate resilience initiatives and look forward to continuing to support Aberdeen Gardens’ various community events. If you want to learn more, click on this link!
