Elizabeth Godsey serves as the Technical Lead for Coastal Engineering and Regional Sediment Management at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Mobile District (SAM). With over 23 years of experience, she has provided civil, military, and interagency coastal planning and engineering services across a range of USACE missions.
Elizabeth plays a key role in the Coastal Resiliency Program, leading coastal engineering design services for one of the largest authorized system-wide coastal storm risk management programs in USACE. Her expertise includes developing large-scale regional sediment management strategies and leading the restoration of coastal barrier islands along the northern Gulf of Mexico. Through the Mississippi Coastal Improvements Program (MsCIP), Elizabeth collaborates with a multiagency team to integrate nonstructural solutions, such as voluntary buyouts in high-risk areas, alongside natural infrastructure approaches like marsh and barrier island restoration, enhancing system-wide risk reduction strategies.
Elizabeth is committed to expanding the use of Engineering With Nature (EWN) principles across USACE. She sees a critical need to integrate solutions that reduce life-cycle costs while delivering broader economic, ecological, and social benefits. Building on the successes of natural infrastructure projects in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, she is dedicated to advancing these solutions as a key component of resilient coastal engineering strategies.
Engineering With Nature® is the intentional alignment of natural and engineering processes to efficiently and effectively deliver economic, ecological, and social benefits through collaboration.