2 pm: Andy Willner, NY/NJ Baykeeper Executive Director
Speaking on "The State of the Waterways"
From 1990 to present, Andrew Willner has been the Baykeeper and Executive Director of NY/NJ Baykeeper. Baykeeper is a conservation and advocacy organization – the steward for the Bays and watershed of the Hudson-Raritan Estuary (New York/New Jersey Harbor). Baykeeper's mission is to protect, preserve, and restore the ecological integrity and productivity of the Hudson-Raritan Estuary - the most urban estuary on the planet. Mr. Willner holds a Bachelors degree in City Planning (BCP), University of Virginia and did his graduate study in furniture design and sculpture, Virginia Commonwealth University. He has taught at Peters Valley Craft Center, in Layton, NJ and the Wooden Boat School in Brooklin, ME. Also, his speaking topics are: the Public Trust Doctrine, Port vs. Estuary? the State of the Harbor, Storm Water and Metal Recycling, Environmental Advocacy, and Ecological Democracy. He has also run workshops and symposia in environmental advocacy and practice, and has spoken at, chaired, or participated in panels at numerous regional and national conferences.

3:15 pm: Dery Bennett, Director of Special Projects, American Littoral Society
Speaking on "The Geographical Formation of the Sandy Hook Dunes and Surrounding Area"
Dery Bennett, Director of Special Projects became a member of staff of the Littoral Society in 1968 as director of conservation and served as executive director from 1968 to 2003. Under his direction, the Society led the charge to clean up our ocean and enact laws needed to make that happen, and frequently raised the lone voice for the coast. Events of this period led to the formation of other organizations including Clean Ocean Action, the New York/New Jersey Baykeeper, and the Delaware River Keeper. Before coming to the Society, Dery was a Navy diver and worked as an editor, journalist, and teacher. He has written and edited several books on fishing and marine science including Secrets of Bluefishing, Fish Stories, and Seaside Reader and edits the Society's journal, Underwater Naturalist. Dery served on government committees and councils dealing with offshore oil drilling, coastal land use, and estuarine habitat and water quality and sits on the Board of Clean Ocean Action and the Shark Research Institute (Princeton, NJ). He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Geology from Amherst College.