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The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Resources Division is now accepting abstract submissions for the 2025 Resiliency Conference's poster session the evening of October 20th, 2025 on Jekyll Island, Georgia. The deadline to submit poster information is September 15, 2025. Please see the "Agenda" tab to view Call for Posters information. 

Keynote Speaker

 Wayne Clough, PhD

Wayne Clough was born in the rural town of Douglas Georgia, the seat of Coffee County, in 1941.  His family has deep roots in South Georgia having lived there for five generations.  Growing up in Douglas as a boy he developed a love of nature and reading, and learned to build things using his hands. He attended Georgia Tech earning two degrees in civil engineering, and obtained a PhD in civil engineering at the University of California at Berkeley.  Clough served on the faculties of Stanford University,  Duke University, Virginia Tech and the University of Washington.  He became the first alumnus to serve as president of Georgia Tech 1994.   Upon retirement from Georgia Tech in 2008, he  served as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC until 2014. 

During his career he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1990, and in 2010, he was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Sciences.  He received honorary doctorates from twelve universities and served on the National Science Board and the President’s Council on Science and Technology.

Today, he lectures on climate change, and works in support of financially disadvantaged students through the Georgia Tech Promise Program that has provided over 1300 students with a debt free education. He has written four books, one of which, Things New and Strange: A Southerner’s Journey Through the Smithsonian Collections, won the Georgia Writer’s Association award for best history in 2020.    

Monica Thornton

As Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy in Georgia, Monica Thornton leads a passionate team of conservationists dedicated to protecting and restoring Georgia’s natural areas. Previously, she held leadership roles at Piedmont Park Conservancy and Georgia Conservancy, raising millions of dollars for greenspace projects, including Piedmont Park’s historic 53-acre expansion. Monica also led communications efforts for conservation wins like the interstate water wars litigation and GOSA passage.
 

Before joining TNC, she was Director of Association Advancement at Georgia Municipal Association and Senior Advancement Officer at CDC Foundation, where she managed global projects on health equity, gun violence, and climate change. Monica has also held roles at Women in Technology, United Way of Metro Atlanta, Fox 5 Atlanta, CBS Atlanta, WSB-TV, and Georgia Public Broadcasting. Monica is a graduate of the Institute for Georgia Environmental Leadership, holds two degrees from Georgia State and is a mom to three adult sons.

Mark Williams

Mark Williams will provide the Jekyll Island Welcome!  Prior to becoming Executive Director of the Jekyll Island Authority in July of 2023, Williams was Commissioner for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) since 2010, overseeing the agency and its approximately 2,500 employees. Under his leadership DNR acquired over 140,000 acres of land for public use.

As DNR Commissioner, Williams also held an ex-officio position on the Jekyll Island Authority Board and previously served in Gubernatorial Board Appointments for the Department of Community Affairs, Chaired the Coastal Marshlands and Shore Protection Committees, the Georgia Natural Resources Foundation, the Land Conservation Council, the Sapelo Island Heritage Authority, the Stone Mountain Memorial Association, the Governor’s Water Supply Program Task Force, and the Georgia Aviation Authority.

Mr. Williams represented the 178th district in the State House of Representatives for two terms from 2006-2010.
Mark holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and is also a veteran of the Army National Guard.
Mark and his wife Pam have two daughters, Mary Katelyn and Miranda. He is a proud grandparent to Mary Katelyn and her husband Troy’s two sets of twins.

Venue Information 

Jekyll Island Convention Center 

75 Beachview Dr N, Jekyll Island, GA 31527

Opened in May 2021, the 125,000 square foot Jekyll Island oceanfront Convention Center boasts 78K square feet of flexible meeting space. Their 45K square foot ballroom and ten breakout rooms are perfect for small meetings to large conferences for up to 2,000 attendees. 350 hotel rooms and their Beach Village are right outside within walking distance, with another 1,000 Island hotel rooms within a 2-minute ride.

The Jekyll Island Convention Center welcome our group to the Island and look forward to showcasing why Jekyll Island is the perfect location to host our conference.