About Jim Blackburn. |
Jim Blackburn is a long-time environmental lawyer and environmental planner who is also a Professor in the Practice of Environmental Law in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Rice University in Houston. His law firm Blackburn and Carter, PC is devoted strictly to environmental matters and his planning firm Sustainable Planning and Design specializes in sustainable development and coastal environmental planning. At Rice, Blackburn teaches one course on Sustainable Design and another on Environmental Law, directs the undergraduate minor in Energy and Water Sustainability, is co-director of the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center and a Faculty Scholar at the Baker Institute. He is currently working at the Baker Institute on developing a standard for storing carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere by plants and stored in the soil of ranchers and farmers across the United State. He is also researching the future of the plastics industry, focusing on the circular economy, carbon neutral design and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is a part of the SSPEED Center team developing the Galveston Bay Park Plan and Green Coast non-structural alternatives for surge damage reduction.
Blackburn has had two books published by Texas A&M Press – The Book of Texas Bays in 2004 and A Texan Plan for the Texas Coast, 2017. He also co-authored two books of art and poetry about birds with artist Isabelle Scurry Chapman – Birds: A Book of Verse and Vision, 2009 and Hill Country Birds and Waters: Art and Poems, 2018.
Blackburn also is active in civic affairs. He founded and is President of the Texas Coastal Exchange, a Houston-based non-profit dedicated to creating a market for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in the soil of the Texas coast. He is also the President and co-founder of the Bayou City Initiative, a citizen’s group dedicated to working on Houston flooding problems. Other civic organizations of which he is President of the board includes the Matagorda Bay Foundation, a group dedicated to protecting Matagorda Bay, the Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association (TESPA), a Texas Hill Country organization fighting to protect Hill Country groundwater, springs and rivers, and The Aransas Project (TAP), a group formed to protect the integrity of the Copano-Aransas-San Antonio Bay system and to protect whooping cranes. Blackburn is on the Board of Advisors to Houston Audubon Society and the Rothko Chapel. You can find the links to these organizations below, as well as additional information.
Blackburn has received numerous awards over the years. He was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni Laureate of Rice University in 2018, and he has been voted by his peers as a Texas Monthly Texas Superlawyer for the last 16 years. Blackburn received the Armand Yramategui Conservation Award from the Armand Bayou Nature Center in 2018, the Good Egg Award from the International Crane Foundation in 2015 for litigation to protect the whooping crane, the Barbara Jordan Public Advocacy Award from Texas Southern University in 2007 and the Robert Eckhardt Lifetime Coastal Achievement Award from the General Land Office, State of Texas in 1998.
He is married to Garland Kerr and lives in Houston.
Blackburn has had two books published by Texas A&M Press – The Book of Texas Bays in 2004 and A Texan Plan for the Texas Coast, 2017. He also co-authored two books of art and poetry about birds with artist Isabelle Scurry Chapman – Birds: A Book of Verse and Vision, 2009 and Hill Country Birds and Waters: Art and Poems, 2018.
Blackburn also is active in civic affairs. He founded and is President of the Texas Coastal Exchange, a Houston-based non-profit dedicated to creating a market for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in the soil of the Texas coast. He is also the President and co-founder of the Bayou City Initiative, a citizen’s group dedicated to working on Houston flooding problems. Other civic organizations of which he is President of the board includes the Matagorda Bay Foundation, a group dedicated to protecting Matagorda Bay, the Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association (TESPA), a Texas Hill Country organization fighting to protect Hill Country groundwater, springs and rivers, and The Aransas Project (TAP), a group formed to protect the integrity of the Copano-Aransas-San Antonio Bay system and to protect whooping cranes. Blackburn is on the Board of Advisors to Houston Audubon Society and the Rothko Chapel. You can find the links to these organizations below, as well as additional information.
Blackburn has received numerous awards over the years. He was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni Laureate of Rice University in 2018, and he has been voted by his peers as a Texas Monthly Texas Superlawyer for the last 16 years. Blackburn received the Armand Yramategui Conservation Award from the Armand Bayou Nature Center in 2018, the Good Egg Award from the International Crane Foundation in 2015 for litigation to protect the whooping crane, the Barbara Jordan Public Advocacy Award from Texas Southern University in 2007 and the Robert Eckhardt Lifetime Coastal Achievement Award from the General Land Office, State of Texas in 1998.
He is married to Garland Kerr and lives in Houston.
Affiliated Organizations
The following is a list of some of the organizations I am currently affiliated with or have worked with in the past. I am proud to support these organizations and encourage you to follow the links below for more information or to get involved.
The following is a list of some of the organizations I am currently affiliated with or have worked with in the past. I am proud to support these organizations and encourage you to follow the links below for more information or to get involved.
Rice SSPEED Center- The Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters (SSPEED) Center was established in 2007 as a university-based research and education center. Led by Rice University, the SSPEED Center organizes leading Gulf Coast universities, researchers, emergency managers, industry leaders and private and public entities to better address severe storm prediction and its impact on the region.
Houston Audubon- Houston Audubon is a regional nonprofit conservation, education and advocacy organization that focuses on protecting the natural environment for birds and people. A significant part of our work is owning and managing nature sanctuaries to protect habitat for birds and provide people recreational opportunities in nature.
Rothko Chapel- The Rothko Chapel’s mission is to create opportunities for spiritual growth and dialogue that illuminate our shared humanity and inspire action leading to a world in which all are treated with dignity and respect.
Houston Audubon- Houston Audubon is a regional nonprofit conservation, education and advocacy organization that focuses on protecting the natural environment for birds and people. A significant part of our work is owning and managing nature sanctuaries to protect habitat for birds and provide people recreational opportunities in nature.
Rothko Chapel- The Rothko Chapel’s mission is to create opportunities for spiritual growth and dialogue that illuminate our shared humanity and inspire action leading to a world in which all are treated with dignity and respect.