Ashley Edwards recently entered the private sector, after serving as President and CEO of the Gulf Coast Business Council since 2015. As President and CEO of the Gulf Coast Business Council, Ashley led an organization that championed common economic and business interests on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Throughout his career, Ashley has become a recognized expert in identifying emerging issues, convening necessary resources, framing public policy, and developing transformational solutions for communities, states, and regional economies. Before leading the Business Council, Ashley served as Chief Executive Officer of the Hancock County Port and Harbor Commission, where he led a team tasked with operating Port Bienville Industrial Complex, Stennis International Airport and the Economic Development Authority for Hancock County.

After Hurricane Katrina’s landfall in 2005, Ashley led recovery efforts in the State of Mississippi as a member of the Governor’s Staff. Specifically, he served as Deputy Director, and later Executive Director of Governor Haley Barbour’s Office of Recovery and Renewal, where he was responsible for comprehensively implementing the State of Mississippi’s Hurricane Katrina recovery plan. He later served as Executive Director of Governor Phil Bryant’s Office of Recovery, where he was responsible for overseeing the closeout of Mississippi’s Hurricane Katrina long-term recovery efforts, which included the expenditure and compliance for more than $5 billion in federal and state resources.

Ashley is an alumnus of The University of Southern Mississippi, where he received his Master’s Degree in Economic Development, and Tulane University where he received his bachelor’s degree. Ashley is also a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Public Leadership Program. In February 2015, Development Counsellors International named Ashley as one of the nation’s Top Rising Stars in Economic Development. He has also received the prestigious One Coast Community Leader Award from the regional Chambers of Commerce in Coastal Mississippi.

Ashley has served on the Boards of Directors for the National Oceans and Applications Research Center, the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, Goodwill Industries of South Mississippi, the United Way and The University of Southern Mississippi College of Business and Economic Development Partners’ Advisory Council. The Mississippi Governor appointed Ashley as Chairman of the Gulf Coast Restoration Advisory Board, which oversees the expenditure of BP Economic Damage Settlement Funds in Coastal Mississippi. Ashley was also recently named to the Board of Directors for The Skills Foundation of Mississippi, which seeks to develop strategies to increase Mississippi’s supply of skilled workforce. Ashley also serves as one of the State of Mississippi’s Commissioners for the Southern Rail Commission.