The Nancy Sanderson Matherne Institute for Global Communications connects Nicholls State University to the world through applied, environmentally focused international experiences. Each year, a select group of mass communication students develop a real-world international communications campaign tied to global environmental challenges and Louisiana’s coastal land-loss crisis.

Students work directly with an international client and travel to the United Kingdom to present their campaign to communications professionals and the project client. The experience also includes field research in an additional international location, where students collect original data, interviews, and stories documenting regional environmental threats. Through this immersive model, students gain practical experience, global perspective, and professional networks that prepare them for careers in global communication and environmental strategy.

The Institute was created and funded by Dr. Brian Matherne and his daughter Kellie Daniels in honor of Nancy Sanderson Matherne, a United Kingdom native, longtime Terrebonne Parish resident, and the first female member of the Terrebonne Parish School Board.