Welcome to Florida

"Welcome (back)to Florida" Jeff Bezos . We're getting wet on this episode and learning about the Atlantic Goliath Grouper . Our guest is marine scientist, researcher and conservationist Sarah Frias-Torres who spent 20 years in Florida studying this magnificent fish. Find her on Twitter and Instagram @GrouperDoc. In the episode, she mentioned a scientific paper, here is a link to tha...

There is no love affair as strong as the one between the Florida legislature and developers. Politicos in Tallahassee just gave the industry another major gift . In 2018, Florida voters in overwhelming fashion put a stop to greyhound racing by voting for a constitutional amendment outlawing it. Carey M. Theil helped lead the grassroots effort to ban the "sport" which had murdered and abu...

We enjoy every episode of "Welcome to Florida," but enjoyed this one more than most. This story takes us to Fort George Island about midway between Jacksonville and Amelia Island by the St. John's River and Atlantic Ocean. This is the location of Kingsley Plantation, named for its owner Zephaniah Kingsley . His, however, is not the most interesting story to be told there, that story...

Was it simple incompetence or something more sinister which cost Florida the chance to receive millions of dollars in federal funding to apply toward residential solar power. Our guest this week is Rebecca Renner who's new book "Gator Country: Deception, Danger, and Alligators in the Everglades" tells the story of an undercover Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission sting...

Manatees in Florida could be placed back on the Endangered Species List . One of the greatest miscarriages of justice in America occurred in Port St. Joe, Florida in the case of Freddie Lee Pitts and Wilbert Lee . The two Black men were convicted of a double homicide despite no physical evidence, no credible eyewitness, confessions forced via police torture, and a subsequent confession shortly aft...

Valerie Vande Panne fills in again for Chadd Scott on this episode and she and Craig start off by discussing a limited-run TV series put out by Conservation Florida about the state's environmental problems called "Protect Our Paradise." Find Valerie and follow her work on her Substack page . This episode's guest is William McKeen, author of "Mile Marker Zero: The Moveable...

Valerie Vande Panne filled in for Chadd Scott on this episode of "Welcome to Florida." She and Craig began by discussing his latest Florida Phoenix column on airboats . Keep up with Valerie on Substack . This episode's guest is Craig Allen, author of "Univision, Telemundo, and the Rise of Spanish-Language Television in the United States." Both networks were headquartered m...

Why reinstituting a bear hunt , which failed ignominiously in 2015, is not the solution for increased human-bear interaction in Florida. In this episode we discuss the ghost orchid with longtime Fakahatchee Strand Preserve park biologist Mike Owen . "Welcome to Florida," as always, is presented by Windstorm Products and windstormproducts.com the No. 1 online retailer of hurricane hardwar...

Ron DeSantis wants MORE fossil fuels and fewer regulations on fossil fuel companies. The Florida Museum of Natural History on the campus of the University of Florida in Gainesville possesses one of the largest, most comprehensive and finest collections natural history in the world. Heather Dewar's gorgeous coffee table book, "All Things Beautiful: Wonders from the Collections of the Flor...

This episode begins by remembering a legend in Florida journalism . Had a development for the Big Bend area of Florida been proposed in recent years, it would have been approved, and the recent hurricane damage there would have been much worse. Our guest is Paul George from the History Miami Museum who tells us all about the founder of Miami Beach, Carl Fisher . The biography Craig mentioned is &q...

A closed meeting in Israel resulted in Ron DeSantis allowing a foreign company to disperse its supposed miracle cure for blue green algae in waters across the state without the product previously being tested for potential negative environmental or human health effects. Our guests this episode are Vickie Oldham,  president and CEO of the Sarasota African American Cultural Coalition and founder of...

This episode begins by paying our respects to Jimmy Buffett and his conservation work in Florida. Our guest is Florida Keys historian Brad Bertelli who tells us all about conch, the gastropod, conchs, the people, and the Conch Republic, better known as the Florida Keys. His Florida Keys history Facebook group is a wonderful resource and community for lovers of the Keys. "Welcome to Florida&qu...

Jacksonville used to stink. Literally. Bad. That was a result of paper mills. What turned Jacksonville around serves as a model for how the state can solve its toxic algae bloom crisis. The Castillo de San Marcos is one of the top tourist attractions in St. Augustine. The Spanish fort at one time served an important military purpose for Spain's colonial ambitions in North America. Our guest f...

We begin this episode with county commissioners in Manatee County favoring sprawl over wetlands. Our guest is University of Florida professor of insect systematics and taxonomy and firefly researcher Marc Branham who tells us all about these fascinating insects. "Welcome to Florida" is presented by Windstorm Products the leading online retailer of hurricane hardware at www.windstormprodu...

While the world burns and Florida scorches as a result of global warming driven by carbon emissions, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection is working to prevent fossil fuel power plants from having to clean up their act . Former "Welcome to Florida" guest Diane Roberts wrote a wonderful column for the Florida Phoenix recently titled, "GOP Death Cult is holding Earth hos...

This week's episode begins with Florida's connection to the Endangered Species Act . Our guest is Josh Liller, historian and collections manager at the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse . Josh edited the Florida Lighthouse Trail book and is a member of the Florida Lighthouse Association , which you can join as well. We discuss the history of lighthouses and lighthouse keepers in Florida. Thanks f...

We begin our episode with a Florida location we've not discussed previously: Alva . Our guest is JB Miller , a Mennonite who grew up in Pinecraft next to Sarasota in the 60s and 70s. A community of Mennonite and Amish farmers started coming to the area to farm in the 1930s and has persisted ever since. No longer farming, tourism is now the top draw. "Welcome to Florida" is presented...

We begin with a follow-up to last week's episode in which we talked to legendary Florida conservationist Jack Rudloe. Our guest this episode is author and historian Robert Bucellatto whose book "Rumrunners and Moonshiners of Old Florida" recalls the Prohibition era in Florida. If you'd like to personally support the production of "Welcome to Florida," you can do so by...

What is "environmental racism?" It goes on all over Florida (BIG SUGAR). Craig Pittman explains. Jack Rudloe has been observing marine life on the Gulf of Mexico around Panacea, FL since the 1950s. He's an author . An environmental activist . And founder of the Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory. We mention Jack's abuse at the hands of law enforcement; here's more information...

Not only is climate change adversely impacting those of us on land, it's warming waters around Florida taking a toll on marine life. Our guest this episode is Kevin Sheilley, president and CEO of the Ocala Metro Chamber and Economic Partnership. Ocala is "the Horse Capitol of the World." Kevin explains how the city earned that moniker, when Florida became a horse destination, and we...

This week's episode begins with a look at the series of disastrous bills signed into law by Ron DeSantis that will imperil Florida's environment for decades to come, if not forever. Our guest this week is author Michael Tougias whose book "Above & Beyond: John F. Kennedy and America's Most Dangerous Cold War Spy Mission" centers around the Cuban Missile Crisis. His mos...

We begin today's show with some shady developer dealings in Captiva . Florida is as well-known as a haven for retirees as anything. Helping people make that transition is the American Association of Retired Persons - AARP. Jeff Johnson is the state director for AARP Florida and he joins us to discuss AARP's work in Florida. Thanks again to Windstorm Products for supporting the podcast. W...

We have hit the 3rd anniversary of the "Welcome to Florida" podcast and we want to thank you for listening. If you'd like to take your support of the show further, you can do so by becoming a patron at www.patreon.com/welcometoflorida . For as little as $5 a month you'll help us continue producing the show and have access to exclusive bonus episodes. Our guest this week is Laur...

What's weird? A Florida city council suing its citizens over the topic of clean water. Eliot Kleinberg is the father of "weird Florida." In 1998, he published "Weird Florida," a compilation of Florida oddities which would eventually spawn the weird Florida and Florida man genres. Eliot joins us this week, his second appearance on the show . Thank you "Welcome to Flori...

"What the f*uck happened here!?!" If you're a nature lover in Florida, chances are you've said - or screamed - these words upon discovering a beloved tree or beach or meadow destroyed without warning by your city or county, a developer or a resident. We begin the episode exploring "what the f*uck happened here" in Port St. Lucie. Our guest is writer John Birdsall who...