From April 7 to 11, 2025, M2 student Sakaue and Dr. Bobby Minola Ginting attended the international conference Coastal Dynamics 2025, held in Aveiro, Portugal (official website).
Coastal Dynamics is a prestigious international conference held every four years, with previous editions taking place in locations such as Barcelona, the United Kingdom, Japan, Sweden, and France. This year’s theme, “Living with a Dynamic Coast,” brought together cutting-edge research and practical applications addressing morphological changes in diverse coastal environments—sandy, rocky, or muddy; open coasts, bays, or estuaries; with or without coastal structures. Presentations emphasized the complex interactions among waves, currents, wind, water, sediment, and ecosystems.
Both Sakaue and Bobby gave oral presentations, with Sakaue’s on the 8th and Bobby’s on the 10th.
Sakaue’s First International Conference Experience
Sakaue gave his oral presentation on April 8. This marked a significant milestone for him, as it was not only his first international conference but also his first visit to Europe. Despite initial nerves, he delivered his presentation with confidence and actively engaged with feedback from international researchers.
He also participated in the conference’s social events, including the Welcome Reception and the Young Professionals BBQ, which offered excellent opportunities for networking and exchanging ideas with fellow early-career researchers from around the world.
During his free time, Sakaue explored the city of Aveiro—often referred to as the “Venice of Portugal”—and visited local landmarks such as the iconic canals and salt pans. He also took a short trip to the picturesque coastal town of Costa Nova, famous for its colorful striped houses and scenic beaches.
For Sakaue, this was not only his first international conference, but also his first visit to Europe. As part of the conference’s social events, he attended the Welcome Reception and the Young Professionals BBQ, which offered valuable opportunities for him to interact with the other presenters.
Bobby’s Active Role at the Conference and Beyond
Dr. Bobby Minola Ginting had a full and fruitful schedule throughout the event. On the first day, April 7, he participated in the short course “Incorporating Data Science and Climate in Coastal Engineering,” which was led by researchers from the University of Cantabria, TU Delft, and Oregon State University.
On April 10, he delivered his oral presentation titled “Modeling Sediment Transport Characteristics of Bores Propagating Through Emergent Vegetation.” Additionally, he joined the technical visit on April 11, which provided an insightful field tour of the Portuguese coastline between Esmoriz and Furadouro. This tour included stops at several sandy beaches, showcasing various coastal interventions implemented to stabilize the shoreline and mitigate erosion over time.
Following the conference, Dr. Ginting continued his academic journey through Germany. He was invited by Prof. Ilhan Özgen at TU Braunschweig to give a seminar on April 22, and by Prof. Reinhard Hinkelmann at TU Berlin to present his research at the Colloquium Hydrosciences on April 24. This lecture series is jointly hosted by the Chair of Water Resources Management and Modeling of Hydrosystems and the Chair of Urban Water Management (event details).
At TU Berlin, he gave a talk titled “New Drag Force Formulation for Non-Hydrostatic, Turbulent Shallow Water and Sediment Transport Modeling.” Returning to Germany for the first time since completing his PhD at TU Munich in 2019, Dr. Ginting greatly enjoyed reconnecting with colleagues and building new collaborations.
