Clay Henderson

Clay Henderson
Executive Director Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience
Stetson University

The Institute utilizes faculty and student research to inform policy options for significant natural resource issues.  Prior to coming to Stetson, Clay Henderson served as senior counsel at Holland & Knight LLP practicing in the public policy section in the fields of environmental and land use law, and remains of counsel to the firm.   Previously he served as President of Florida Audubon Society and was elected to two terms on the Volusia County Council. Henderson has long been engaged in environmental policy in Florida.  He served on the 1998 Florida Constitution Revision Commission and sponsored most of the environmental provisions in Florida’s Constitution including the creation of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. He co-authored the Florida Water and Land Legacy Initiative, the largest conservation funding program our nation’s history ratified in 2014. The initiative is projected to fund over $20 billion for conservation over the next 20 years. He was also a leader in the development of Florida’s signature land acquisition programs and negotiated the acquisition of over 300,000 acres of conservation lands. Henderson has been recognized for his body of work including the national public service award from The Nature Conservancy, Bill Sadowski Memorial Award from the Environment and Land Use Section of the Florida Bar, Champion of Sustainability from the Central Florida Partnership, lifetime achievement award from the Marine Resources Council, and George Hood Award from Stetson University.  His book, The Floridas, celebrates the state’s special places.