Welcome to Florida

This episode begins by discussing Craig's most recent "Flamingo" magazine article about the Florida State Park system. Our guest is Lauren Ali, Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail coordinator. The Trail is a project of the FWC - Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The New College of Florida has been purged of its academic integrity and set up as an incubator of right wing ideology by Ron DeSantis, now, the school's president has destroyed an environmental preserve to construct ball fields. Michael Adno is a freelance writer and photographer from Sarasota. He recently visited the Apalachicola State Forest in the Panhandle to investigate worm grunting.

What Donald Trump didn't say about climate change during the presidential debate spoke volumes. During the debate, Trump said, "During my four years, I had the best environmental numbers ever." The exact opposite is true. Trump was the most anti-environmental president in U.S. history, rolling back 100+ environmental protections. The built environment and "vibe" of Miami B...

Solar energy is heating up in Florida no thanks to state government . Harry Crews grew up dirt poor in south Georgia during the Great Depression before moving to Florida, enrolling at UF, and then becoming a famous writer of novels, essays, reported pieces, and screenplays. He also taught creative writing at the University of Florida for three decades. Ted Geltner met Crews while working at "...

Eco-criminal Ron DeSantis continues working against Florida's environment . They exist only in Miami: ventanitas. You'll find the "little windows" attached to Cuban restaurants. Customers can order food and coffee out of them, sometimes, 24-hours a day. This episode's guest Daniela Perez is a Miami native who wrote a book on the subject, "Ventanitas: A Window into Mia...

One of the worst bills to pass out of the Florida legislature in the most recent session was supported completely on lies. Everyone has heard of birder and artist John James Audubon, namesake of the Audubon Foundation. Audubon came to Florida twice while researching his epic "Birds of America." Our guest today, Kenn Kaufman , is one of America's great birders and author of “The Bird...

Florida congressman Matt Gaetz wants to bomb endangered whales in the Gulf of Mexico. One of Florida's great hidden gem cultural and tourist attractions is Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach. As beautiful as the gardens are today, the history of Japanese immigration to Florida and the garden's founding are equally interesting. Curator of education at Morikami Wendy Lo j...

Beach renourishment : ecological necessity or government handout to the wealthiest of Florida's property owners? Former Florida governor and U.S. Senator Bob Graham passed away in the spring of 2024 at the age of 87. Joining us on this episode to discuss Graham's life and legacy is S.V.  Date, author of "Quiet Passion: A Biography of Bob Graham." Thanks again to all of our patr...

Ron DeSantis: junkie . Our subject this episode is the fabulous Mar-a-Lago estate on Palm Beach. We discuss it's history from Marjorie Merriweather Post through Donald Trump and what makes the mansion/private club special. Les Standiford, author of "Palm Beach, Mar-a-Lago, and the Rise of America's Xanadu,"  provides the expertise.

The state's Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson wants to sell off public lands to farmers and ranchers. This week's subject is Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, first chairwoman of the Seminole Tribe in Florida. Our guest is Patsy West, co-author of Tiger Jumper's autobiography, "A Seminole Legend: The Life of Betty Mae Tiger Jumper."

Could golf courses hold a solution for conservation in Florida? Tampa Bay is surprising young, and shallow, and NOT the name of a city. Our guest this episode is Evan Bennett, author of "Tampa Bay: The Story of an Estuary and Its People."

Our episode begins with a $400 million mystery in the state budget. Folklorist and musician Robert Stone joins us. He helped bring the steel guitar music popular in the House of God and Church of the Living God communities in South Florida and around the South to greater prominence . 

Former Florida governor Bob Graham wasn't born an environmentalist, he became one . Our guest this episode is New York Times best-selling author , TIME magazine 100 most influential people for 2024, Gainesville resident, and now bookstore owner Lauren Groff. Groff's new bookstore, The Lynx Books , opened in late April 2024 with an emphasis on selling banned books and Florida authors.

We begin this week's episode remembering former Florida governor and U.S. Senator Bob Graham who passed away recently. Our guest is Marty Fleischman who worked in the Jai-Alai industry across Florida for more than 40 years. He explains how the sport came to Florida, its rise to incredible popularity in Miami and Tampa, and the factors which have rendered it largely forgotten today.

Did you know there's oil drilling in Florida? Now you do . Our guest for this episode is archaeologist and professor in the anthropology department at USF Nancy Marie White. White researches ancient Indigenous people and cultures in the Florida Panhandle and has authored a pair of books on the subject . We're specifically discussing Indigenous mounds and middens. Visit sites along the Tr...

Journey along with Craig to Gilcrest Blue Springs . Our subject today is a giant of 20th century activism and equal rights: A. Philip Randolph . Randolph helped push through federal equal employment legislation, had a hand in integrating the American armed forces, and organized the 1963 March for Jobs and Freedom in Washington, D.C. Our guest is Alan Bliss, CEO of the Jacksonville Historical Socie...

Craig has a vision for the Museum of Florida History . Few people recognize the name Hamilton Disston . Our guest this episode, Josh Ginsberg , explains why Disston is essential to a complete understanding of Florida's history.

The Florida legislature has appropriated $25 million to study a problem it already knows the causes of and solutions for. Everyone knows Orlando for Disney, even though the theme park isn't inside the city limits, but there's a lot more to the Magic City than rides and tourists. Scott Maxwell has been writing for the Orlando Sentinel  since 1998 and joins us to discuss the myths and real...

The Florida legislature is sacrificing outdoor workers to climate change . Read Florida corporate and government watchdog Jason Garcia's outstanding "Seeking Rents." The great Dave Barry joins the show this episode. His humor column ran from 1983 through 2005 in the Miami Herald. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his commentary in 1988. He's authored over 30 books, the most...

When does "permanent" have an expiration date? When the term is applied to a conservation easement in Florida . Our guest is Florida historian and author Robert Redd who's written numerous books on Florida, including two on the state's role in the Civil War .

The Florida legislature is attempting to solve climate change by ignoring it . Florida is the epicenter of right wing efforts nationally to ban books, discriminatory efforts targeting books with LGBTQ+ as well as Black and brown characters. Katie Blankenship is the Director of PEN America Florida, a new outreach effort to combat the government suppression of free expression here. More information...

Great news for conservation in Florida starts this episode! Janet Reno is best known as being the first female U.S. Attorney General during the Clinton Administration. She was also a Floridian, born and raised in Miami. Judith Hicks Stiehm has written the definitive biography of Reno, "Janet Reno: A Life." Judith Hicks Stiehm's daughter Jamie Stiehm joins us to discuss Reno.

This episode begins in Estero Bay. Florida's geology, it's sandy surface soil, abundance of surface water and ground water, and limestone karst bedrock make it the sinkhole capital of America. Ann Tihansky studied sinkholes for many years in Florida with the U.S. Geologic Survey and put together the "Sinkholes 101" guidebook. She joins us to explain why and how sinkholes form....

Members of the Florida State Legislature want to protect the rights of single use plastics . Journalist Ben Montgomery worked as a reporting duo helping expose the Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, a facility with a horrifying 100 year history of torture. The story is graphic and gruesome, details we'll discuss in this episode.  Additional reading on the Dozier School: https://www.quillmag....

Now that his presidential campaign is over, Craig Pittman has some advice for Ron DeSantis. Warren Zanes played music with rock icon Tom Petty and was his friend for decades. He also wrote Petty's biography, "Petty: The Biography." Zanes joins us to discuss Gainesville's Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.