We Can Save Ourselves and the Earth by Learning How to Save Wildlife
The most peaceful creatures on the planet are offering us a chance
Nature is sending us a warning. Are we listening? Last year on Florida's east coast over 1,100 manatees died from starvation, which is more manatees than we had alive in Florida just 40 years ago. What is causing the loss of food sources for manatees and other aquatic life? What does it mean for us? Can we do anything about it? Join us for our conversation with Patrick Rose, Executive Director of the hugely influential Save the Manatee Club. Patrick tells us about the warning signs scientists have seen coming for decades, why we've reached a tipping point, and how manatees are offering us an opportunity to save ourselves - our wildlife, our water, our health - by saving them first.
What you can do today
Learn more, donate, and get involved at https://www.savethemanatee.org/.
Save the Manatee Club action recommendations to protect Florida's waters
Follow Save the Manatee Club on Instagram
Make a commitment to avoid using chemical fertilizers on your lawn or in any outdoor areas
Contact the office of Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, regarding urgent action needed to protect Florida’s ecosystems
Contact Nikki Fried, the Commission for Florida’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Challenge
The Lorax challenge. Adopt a cause. Pick something personal for you. Become an expert about your cause and then get loud about it. How can you bring more awareness and action to what you've chosen to support? Be the Lorax for your chosen cause.
Resources
SMC Manatee Cam with live footage of manatees in their Florida habitats
Treehugger article with foundational information about manatees and why they have been threatened for decades
PBS News Story on the drastic measures Florida biologists are taking to save manatees from starvation
Press release from Save the Manatee Club, Center for Biological Diversity, and Defenders of Wildlife announcing their joint lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to demand greater protection for manatees and manatee ecosystems
The Counter article describing the disastrous Piney Point disaster and the loss of aquatic life that occurred as a result
Fantastic 3-minute Everglades Trust info video telling the story of the current water pollution going on in Florida and what has caused it
Everglades Trust article describing the relationship between protecting the Everglades and Florida ecosystems and the local big sugar industry
Everglades Trust article about the new book Moving Water by Amy Green describing big sugar’s influence on Florida and how we can take action to conserve what we have
Why Saving Manatees is an Opportunity to Save Ourselves
Patrick Rose of Save the Manatee Club joins us for an urgent look at why protecting wildlife is the same as protecting ourselves