Lit Chat Interview with "Forces of Nature" Author Clay Henderson

Learn from Conservation Experts

In his book Forces of Nature, Clay Henderson celebrates the individuals and organizations who made the Sunshine State a leader in state-funded conservation and land preservation. Learn how you can help defend Florida's natural wonders. Join the conversation with this award-winning environmental lawyer and Florida Master Naturalist Ryan Worthington. This special Lit Chat Interview is part of the Library's 2026 Conservation Series.

Stroll the Boardwalk

Walk with Clay from 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. at the nearby Blue Cypress Park. He'll talk about local conservation efforts and the flora and fauna that can be found along the banks of the St. Johns River. 

Lit Chat Interview

Clay will be in conversation with Florida Master Naturalist Ryan Worthington from 1 - 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 27 at the University Park Branch Library. An audience Q&A and book signing will follow the 40-minute interview with books available from San Marco Books & More.

Meet Clay Henderson

Clay Henderson, author of Forces of Nature: A History of Florida Land Conservation, is an award-winning environmental lawyer, educator, and writer long involved in environmental policy. He has served as president of Florida Audubon Society and Florida Trust for Historic Preservation. His previous public service includes Florida Constitution Revision Commission, Florida Communities Trust, and Chair of the Volusia County Council. Until his retirement, he served as Executive Director of the Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience at Stetson University. He has been recognized with the national public service award from The Nature Conservancy, lifetime achievement award from Environment and Land Use Section of the Florida Bar, and Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, and an EMMY award for the documentary Protect Our Paradise. 

Interviewer Ryan Worthington is a Florida native who grew up living in Florida State Parks while his father was a park ranger. Currently, Ryan is a Florida Master Naturalist and in his free time, roams Florida exploring its natural wonders and creating video shorts showcasing what makes Florida great.  When he is not podcasting and exploring Florida, Ryan advocates for Florida's environment at the local and state level.

Keep Reading

Check out Clay's books from the Library! He has published four books, including Forces of Nature, an environmental history of Florida, which received the Stetson Kennedy Florida Book Award.

The Library Recommends:

1. The Wilder Heart of Florida: More Writers Inspired by Florida Nature
2. Travels on the St. Johns River, by John Bartram
3. Paving Paradise: Florida’s Vanishing Wetlands and the Failure of No Net Loss, by Craig Pittman
4. The Everglades: River of Grass, by Marjory Stoneman Douglas
5. A Road Running Southward: Following John Muir’s Journey Through an Endangered Land, by Dan Chapman
6. Gator Country: Deception, Danger, and Alligators in the Everglades, by Rebecca Renner
7. Florida Scrub-Jay: Field Notes on a Vanishing Bird, by Mark Jerome Walters
8. Water from Stone: Archaeology and Conservation at Florida’s Springs, by Jason O’Donoughue
9. Backcountry Trails of Florida: a Guide to Hiking Florida’s Water Management Districts, by Terri Mashour
10. Saving Florida: Women’s Fight for the Environment in the Twentieth Century, by Leslie Kemp Poole

Funding for these programs was provided through a grant from the Florida Humanities with funds from The Mosaic Company. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in these programs do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities or The Mosaic Company.