2020 Gulf of Mexico Workshop
Wednesday, December 2nd:
11:00 a.m. (All Times Eastern)- Welcome, Introductions and Brief Overview
Adam Hinterthuer
Director of Programs, Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources
Iyana Esters
Program Assistant, Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources
Dave Spratt
CEO, Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources
11:30-12:30 a.m. - The Gulf: A Rich Natural (and Human) History
Jack Davis
Professor of history/Pulitzer-prize winning author, University of Florida/The Gulf: The Making of An American Sea
12:30 - 1:00pm - Break
1:00 - 2:00pm - Closing the Floodgates: A Massive Barrier Project Aims to Protect Texas from the Next Big Storm
Kelly Burks-Copes
Project Manager, USACE-Galveston District
Tony Williams
Deputy Director, Coastal Field Operations - Texas General Land Office
Brian Harper
Chief, Planning Branch, USACE, Regional Planning and Environmental Center
2:00 - 3:00 p.m. – Opposing the Floodgates: Will Galveston Bay Suffer from Efforts to Protect Galveston?
Bob Stokes
Executive Director, Galveston Bay Foundation
Jordan Macha
Waterkeeper and Executive Director, Bayou City Waterkeeper
3:00 - 3:15 p.m. - Break
3:15 - 4:45 - Opening the Floodgates: Diverted Mississippi Floodwaters Disrupt Gulf Ecology and Economy
Moby Solangi
President and Executive Director, Institute for Marine Mammal Studies
Gerald Blessey
General Manager, Mississippi Sound Coalition
Ryan Bradley
Mississippi Commercial Fisheries United
4:45 p.m. – Workshop adjourns for the day.
Thursday, December 3rd
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. (Again, Eastern Time!) – Africatown: A Community Sees Hope for Its Future in Its Past
Joe Womack
President and CEO, C.H.E.S.S
12:00 - 1:30 p.m. – Fossil Footprints: As City Expands Its Renewable Porfolio, A Gas-Fired Proposal Looms
Monique Harden
Assistant Director/Program Manager, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice
Rev. Gregory Manning
Activist, Justice & Beyond Coalition
Logan Burke
Activist, Alliance for Affordable Energy
1:30 - 2:00 p.m. – Break
2:00 - 3:30 p.m. - The Lingering Legacy of the BP Deepwater Horizon Disaster
Sandra Brooke
Deep-Sea Biologist, Florida State University Coastal and Marine Lab
Sandy Nguyen
Founder and CEO, Coastal Communities Consulting, Inc.
Ian McDonald
Biological Oceanographer, Florida State University
3:30 - 3:45 p.m. - Break
3:45 - 5:15 - Rebuild or Retreat? Climate Change Forces Communities to Confront Tough Choices
Faye Matthews
Legal Policy Advisor and Senior Partnership Manager, National Wildlife Federation
Donald Dardar
Shrimper/Elder, Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe
Patty Ferguson-Bohnee
Attorney, Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe
5:15 - 5:30 - Wrap Session
5:30 - Workshop adjourns for the day.
Friday, December 4th
11:00am - 1:00pm - Reporting Workshop: Covering Hurricanes in the Age of Climate Change
Mark Schleifstein
Environment Reporter, The New Orleans Advocate/The Times-Picayune