NATURALIST 101: "We Are All Whalers": The Plight of the Northern Right Whale THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2 • 7:00 PM (EST) on ZOOM With fewer than 340 individual animals remaining on the planet, we are watching North Atlantic right whales—Georgia's state marine mammal—go extinct before our very eyes. And the choices we make as humans are […]
NATURALIST 101: GENETIC TOOLS FOR SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7 • 7:00 PM (EST) Call it Ancestry DNA for sea turtles. For more than a decade, Dr. Brian Shamblin with UGA’s Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources has worked with partners across the Southeast to create a genetic database that helps researchers better […]
Paul Bolster in conversation with Megan Desrosiers: Saving the Georgia Coast Wednesday, January 17 • 7:00 PM (EST) OHM CEO Megan will be in conversation with Paul Bolster, historian and author of "Saving the Georgia Coast: A Political History of the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act." This pertinent conversation around protecting our salt marshes—especially understanding the […]
NATURALIST 101: Our 2024 Legislative Priorities THURSDAY, January 18 • 7:00 PM (EST) Georgia's 2024 legislative session starts this month! Our advocacy team has been strategically working to maximize this critical time of year at the Capitol. Come at 6:30 pm to meet our advocacy team, and stay for a discussion of 2024's legislative priorities […]
A Coastal Superhero: Saving the Critical Horseshoe Crab Monday, January 22 • 6:30 PM (EST) Join us for a free Zoom webinar about all things Horseshoe Crabs (HSC)! This is your opportunity to learn more about the ecological importance of this iconic coastal species. We'll share about ongoing HSC population recovery efforts and U.S. Pharmacopeia's […]
Okefenokee at the Capitol: A Special Press Event Honoring Those Working to Protect the Okefenokee Monday, January 29 • 1 PM (EST) Local residents from Charlton, Glynn, Wayne, and Ware counties will be at the Capitol on Monday, January 29 to present a petition signed by more than 500 residents of southeast Georgia. Signers have […]
Coastal Conservation Association (Skidaway): Monthly Seminar featuring Susan Inman Monday, February 12 • 7 PM (EST) Susan Inman, Mid Coast Advocate, will share the myriad complex challenges of haphazard development, flooding from sea level rise and storm surge, water and air pollution and habitat loss, and how One Hundred Miles advocates for solutions that will […]
Lobby for the Okefenokee Swamp: Attend a Day at the Capitol Sign up for your preferred time/date here House Bill 71 protects the Okefenokee Swamp from the impacts of future mining. Meet with your legislators to discuss the importance of protecting the swamp and urge them to sign on to House Bill 71: The Okefenokee […]
Lobby for the Okefenokee Swamp: Attend a Day at the Capitol Sign up for your preferred time/date here House Bill 71 protects the Okefenokee Swamp from the impacts of future mining. Meet with your legislators to discuss the importance of protecting the swamp and urge them to sign on to House Bill 71: The Okefenokee […]
Lobby for the Okefenokee Swamp: Attend a Day at the Capitol Sign up for your preferred time/date here House Bill 71 protects the Okefenokee Swamp from the impacts of future mining. Meet with your legislators to discuss the importance of protecting the swamp and urge them to sign on to House Bill 71: The Okefenokee […]
Here you see East Liberty County’s recently adopted land use map. The gray area is Sunbury/Islands Subarea—where most of the industrial rezoning has taken place. Over the last several months, in accordance with this map, many agricultural zones (demarcated in green) have been rezoned into industrial (gray), which immediately abut the residential zones (yellow and orange). The proposed commercial zones (red) are insufficient to provide any sort of adequate buffer for the existing communities, not to mention any that will be built to house the workforce drawn to Liberty as industry grows.
Transition zones are a way to taper land use from “heavy” (think industrial: 24-hour lights, traffic from trucks, noise from machinery and operations) to “medium” before hitting the “light” use (think residential: commuter car traffic, schools, playgrounds). These transition zones can be commercial, containing local businesses and public spaces; character areas, combining the more condensed development of town homes with green spaces; or even conservation areas. They are vital for maintaining community health, safety, and personality, as well as conserving land for native and migratory species.
Adventurous, Creative, Assiduous
I don’t know exactly what it is I want to pursue later in life, but I know I want it to be something that gives me the freedom to travel and explore the world while still making a difference. I want to do something that allows me to be creative and pursue my passions, something more than just a standard desk job.
I’ve participated in South Carolina’s Olympic Development Program for soccer for the past two years.
My favorite place probably has to be Saint Simon’s Island. It’s not just about how beautiful and serene it is, though. I like how being there makes me feel. I like that it makes me feel at peace with myself and lets me escape from the world around me.
I think that major coastal issues to be concerned about primarily surround plastic pollution and the degradation of beaches and coastal lands. There are so many issues that are important and worthwhile, but I feel that plastic pollution is especially important. It threatens wildlife and chemicals leeched can harmfully impact human health, as well.
You are never too small to make a difference. Every movement and every change in history has started with one action, one idea, that was built upon to create change. All contributions, big or small, have the power to make a difference.
Stephanie’s love for the ocean started at a very young age on the beaches of Stone Harbor, New Jersey, searching for and collecting shells with her Nana. This childhood passion never stopped, and she followed her interest in the outdoors by pursuing a degree in Marine Science from American University in Washington, D.C.
After college, Stephanie spent time teaching environmental science in Florida, California, and Georgia. Ultimately settling on the Georgia coast, she worked at Driftwood Education Center on St. Simons Island as the Program Director and later with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources as a Naturalist on Sapelo Island. Stephanie continues to share her love of our coast as a part of the One Hundred Miles education team.
Cumberland Island, where my love for the coast began
Megan Desrosiers is the founding President/CEO of One Hundred Miles, Georgia’s coastal advocacy organization. In an effort to elevate the Georgia coast as a recognized place of historical, cultural, and biological significance, Megan spends her time working in local communities, on regional collaboration projects, and lobbying in Atlanta.
Megan and her team have accomplished a remarkable amount since the organization’s inception ten years ago. One Hundred Miles is responsible for improvements to the Erosion and Sedimentation Act which now requires a 25-foot buffer for all salt marsh, galvanizing statewide opposition to offshore drilling, preventing the US Army Corps of Engineers from dredging during the summer when Georgia’s sea turtles come home to nest, and leading citizens’ efforts to stop Spaceport Camden and repeal harmful zoning on Sapelo Island. Under her leadership, One Hundred Miles has built a network of more than 35,000 advocates who stand ready to respond to bad and promote good ideas that will affect our coast. In six short years, the organization has grown from two employees to 14, an annual budget of $250,000 to more than $1.5 million, and a donor base of six to one of more than 1,200 today.
Before coming to Georgia’s coast, Megan spent ten years at the Coastal Conservation League (CCL) in South Carolina. She was instrumental in efforts to conserve land in the Ashley River Historic Corridor and on Johns Island. She also worked to establish the organization’s first climate and energy and agriculture program agendas.
Megan has worked through the years to help start up organizations form and become sustainable coastal advocacy partners in Georgia and South Carolina. In addition to forming One Hundred Miles, she worked with a team to start GrowFood Carolina, South Carolina’s first local food hub, and collaborated with a group of diverse leaders to initiate Charleston County’s Greenbelt Program. Megan has also served on the founding boards of the South Carolina Outdoor Education Program (SCOEP) and Charleston Moves, a bicycle/pedestrian advocacy organization.
In 2024, Megan was honored with the James S. Dockery, Jr. Southern Environmental Leadership Award from the Southern Environmental Law Center for her excellent and longstanding environmental leadership in the Southeast.
Forsyth Park in downtown Savannah
