We are a group of people interested in building a sustainable and resilient future for the Texas coast. We envision a community that works together to support the ecosystems in our own backyard by supporting the landowners who have been caring for these natural lands for generations. We believe that our community can adapt to a changing climate by understanding and supporting the ecosystems that ​support ​us all.  

Board Of Directors

Jim Blackburn

Jim Blackburn is a professor in the practice of environmental law in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Rice University, teaching courses in sustainable development and environmental law. He is an environmental planner and practiced environmental law with the Blackburn & Carter law firm in Houston. At Rice, he serves as the co-director of the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center, a faculty scholar at the Baker Institute, and director of the undergraduate minor in energy and water sustainability. ​He has received various public service awards, including the Barbara C. Jordan Community Advocate Award from Texas Southern University in 2007, the National Conservation Achievement Award from the National Wildlife Federation in 2001, and the Bob Eckhardt Lifetime Achievement Award for coastal preservation efforts from the Texas General Land Office in 1998. In 2003, he was awarded an honorary membership by the American Institute of Architects for legal work associated with urban quality of life issues in Houston. Blackburn received a B.A. in history and a J.D. from The University of Texas at Austin, as well as a M.S. in environmental science from ​Rice University.

Elizabeth Winston Jones

Elizabeth Winston Jones grew up in Houston, spending most of her time outdoors, exploring and being captivated by nature while playing, fishing and hunting in and along Buffalo Bayou, the Texas coast, and South Texas. Introduced by her hippie Aunt to organics in the 1960s and permaculture in the 1970s, together these varied bits instilled in Elizabeth a deep connection with and passion for nature, an awareness of its purposefulness, and an abiding appreciation for the multi-faceted role it plays in humankind’s well-being. Throughout her adult life, she has served as an advocate and activist board member for local and international nonprofits involved with leveraging nature for the benefit of the community. Elizabeth received a B.A. in History and a J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Colley Hodges

Colley Hodges is an architect, LEED AP, and one of the nation’s first WELL Accredited Professionals.  As Kirksey Architecture’s Director of Sustainability, Colley leads the firm’s green building research, education, and advocacy efforts and supports Kirksey’s projects in meeting their sustainability goals. His volunteer work includes service on the Materials and Resources Technical Advisory Group of the U.S. Green Building Council, the User Advisory Core Committee of the Health Product Declaration Collaborative, AIA Houston’s Gulf Coast Green conference planning committee, and the board of the Citizens’ Environmental Coalition. Colley frequently speaks to audiences across the country on topics related to sustainable design, and his writing has appeared in Cite Magazine, the Houston Chronicle, and other print and online publications.

Mike Marler

​