2024 Call for abstracts

The Florida Shore & Beach Preservation Association and Resiliency Florida welcome abstracts for the 3rd annual Florida Resilience Conference scheduled for September 11-13, at the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort in Bonita Springs, Florida. 

The meeting will feature four concurrent sessions focusing on Beach Management, Energy, Gray and Green Infrastructure, and Smart Planning. Plenary sessions will bring attendees together for discussion from invited speakers on resilience issues of statewide importance, such as federal and state legislative policy and funding initiatives. A preliminary conference schedule can be found here.
 

Individual abstracts must be received by June 3, 2024, to be considered by the committees for inclusion in the program. Abstracts should focus on policy and legal considerations, funding programs, research, and project innovations relating to climate change, sea-level rise, smart planning, beach management, energy, and infrastructure. Ideas for abstracts are listed below, but other ideas are welcome. The conference will be held as an in-person event only.   

To view a sample abstract, see bottom of page.

• Beach nourishment and inlet management projects: studies, design, implementation, and lessons learned
• Post-storm emergency response, recovery, and repair efforts
• Coastal resiliency and coastal risk management projects
• Regional sand management and beneficial use of sand – research and strategies
• Economic benefits of a healthy beach and dune system 
• Engineering with nature: the role of natural resources in shoreline resilience
• Funding mechanisms for beach and resilience projects 
• Coastal management policies - what’s on the horizon
• Legislative and legal updates

• Federal, state, and local climate change policies and funding programs for renewable and sustainable energy production
• Projecting energy demand and increasing security for continued growth
• Innovations for power and renewable energy production projects
• Policies to promote the use of renewable energy
• Statewide, community-level, and individual retrofits – costs and benefits
• Effective marketing and buy-in of energy efficiency measures by end-users
• Electric vehicle technologies and supporting infrastructure
• Innovations in EV batteries and other storage technologies
• Using AI and other digital technologies to increase resilience

• Nature-based solutions to climate change, such as living shorelines, wetlands, and other innovative solutions
• Vulnerability analyses and flood preparedness
• Federal, state, and local resilience policies, programs, and funding opportunities
• Stormwater retention 
• Retrofitting and flood proofing assets
• Design with nature – adapting gray and green infrastructure to changing landscapes  
• Emergency response, mitigation, and buy out programs
• Cyber security in a changing natural environment 
• Cyber resilience of electronic systems
• Transportation – roads, rails, ports, and bridges
• Elevation studies
• Evacuation routes – reducing vulnerability in preparation for coastal storms and sea-level rise
• Ensuring equity in adaptation and climate solutions

• Federal and state resilience policies and grant programs
• Adaptation strategies for rising sea levels, flooding, hurricanes, and other climate-related hazards
• Reimagining community infrastructure that can withstand and absorb natural disasters
• Energy-efficient buildings, integrated development and re-development, and energy audits and strategies
• Sustainable land use practices, such as reducing urban sprawl, protecting natural resources, and enhancing green infrastructure as part of new community planning
• Data and technology, such as GIS, remote sensing, and AI, to inform planning decisions, improve emergency response, and monitor resilience indicators
• OneWater

All expenses are the responsibility of the speaker, including travel, lodging, and conference registration fees.