Oh wow!

Twelve weeks have passed and my internship is over. I have spent this exciting and short time, at least to my perspective looking back, doing all kinds of things that have further armed me with the tools necessary to continue to walk the path towards a long and fruitful career in the preservation of our Mother Nature. During my experience at Everglades National Park, my work revolved around community outreach to find the best ways to communicate climate change in a culturally relevant manner, but that wasn’t all, I had the opportunity to shadow scientists across different fields such as in Butterfly surveys, science dissemination, and lobster surveys. 

Everglades National Park is located at the tip of Florida in a subtropical environment. Home to hundreds of species of plants and animals, it is considered the thirds biggest national park in the continuous USA. Neighboring the 9th largest metropolitan area of the USA, its location and tropical environment not only makes it susceptible to direct land pollution, but it also makes it greatly susceptible to climate change. Having direct access to a big population provides this park with a great opportunity to disseminate science and stewardship towards the land. To do this we must find the most effective ways to engage with the different communities of the area, which is the work I did this last twelve weeks. From my interactions with the community I found 4 coon trends that if interpreted and used correctly in the development of educational material, can be vital in creating a deeper connection and understanding when disseminating climate change science to the public. 

Through my interactions, I was able to find 4 common trends;

First, most of the people I spoke to had a formed idea about climate change, an idea that seemed to alienate them from the issues brought about by climate change. People expressed climate change as a problem for the developing world, describing places around the world that were suffering from drought, or the polar bears running out of ice. Giving scenarios of things that made it seem like a foreign issue that didn’t involve them. With this in mind, we can focus on the issues climate change creates close to home so that we can internalize it and see it as our problem too. 

Second, people see climate change from an economic perspective where if they are not directly impacted in their personal economies, then they do not see it as their problem. Knowing this will help us create educational material based on the economic impacts of climate change such as; increases in taxes, increases in insurance, increases in food prices, repairs of homes and possessions, and any other factor that might affect the economy of the average American.

Third, climate change is often spoken of using projection models and scenarios that are in the future, leading the public to the notion that it is a problem that is likely to happen in the future, giving them the false idea that it is not affecting us now and that it doesn’t require action now. Understanding this is key so that we as scientists and educators can get away from portraying scenarios in the future and instead focus on the problems that we currently face due to climate change allowing people to see it as something that is already here and that needs immediate action.

Finally, after speaking to young activists I was able  to see that this community focuses on the sides of climate change that affect social groups, problems that further increase inequality. Through dialogue, we found that it is possible to alleviate the impacts of climate change and climate change itself if we take proactive approaches from a policy stand. With this in mind, we can create programs that include information of the governing bodies of our natural resources and industries such as but not limited to, the EPA and FDA, so that people understand that when voting and assembling, we must consider the impacts that our government selection will have on our environment. 

As previously stated, during my stay here I also had the opportunity to shadow scientists of all kinds and see all the work they do to preserve Mother Nature. I specifically felt a deeper connection to one particular event, the Lobster surveys. A few weeks ago I went out to the Black Point Marina, close to Biscayne National Park, and performed lobster surveys. This activity was simple, boats arrive and we measure the lobsters and collect locations of fishing, sex and species. Not such a big science, but in reality this easy but long activity can make a great difference in the preservation of this organism. The information obtained is then used to determine how the population is doing this year and along with the information from previous years, we can see how the population is behaving and if current fishing practices and laws are sustainable. Doing this kind of survey is vital so that policies can be placed when the populations are not doing well. For me this was an important moment because it allows me to see that every activity we do, no matter how big or small it seems, impacts our home. People being surveyed understood that this was important and that it would ensure that they could keep enjoying this activity thanks to the works of passionate scientists that every year take the time to go and perform this labor. 

I leave this place with nothing but a revitalized and eager spirit to preserve Mother earth,

Thank you for following me along this journey!

Lo prometido es deuda!

Estoy de regreso para exponerles las historias y experiencias de la gente a raíz del cambio climático. 

En mi travesía en Florida, he encontrado personas de todos los orígenes y niveles socioeconómicos. Lo hermoso de una ciudad tan diversa como Miami es que te encuentras todas las historias y los aspectos de estas que puedas imaginar. Cuando uno piensa en el cambio climático, lo hacemos de manera que parezca lejano y nada inconveniente. Tal vez pensemos, pobres osos polares no tienen hielo o quizás, pobre continente Africano, que feo que no llueva. Hemos creado esta alienación del problema de una manera que nos permita seguir ignorándolo aunque ya en realidad ya nos veamos afectados. Después de hablar con diversas personas en el área de Miami, he llegado a observar que el problema es visto desde una perspectiva principalmente económica. Normalmente su pensamiento es: si no afecta mi economía, no es mi problema.

Ahora bien, quiero presentar la historia de la comunidad inmigrante, agrícola y jornalera, quienes representan a un gran porcentaje de la población de Miami. Estas personas se encuentran en la línea frontera entre el cambio climático y sus consecuencias.

Jornadas largas, al exterior, sin descansos compensados, y muchas veces mal pagados, estas son las condiciones a las que muchos trabajadores de la comunidad inmigrante,  del campo, y jornaleros se tienen que enfrentar, ahora agreguemos los problemas que el cambio climático les ha traído.   

En esta publicación me gustaría transmitir una historia que yo creo que nos ayuda a ver el problema no solo como un problema medioambiental sino también como un problema cultural y social. Andrés es un inmigrante de una zona rural de México en el estado de San Luis Potosí. En su pueblo natal, la principal fuente de ingresos era la agricultura, primariamente parcelas y ganadería. Andrés, como muchos otros, se vio obligado a dejar sus raíces y tradiciones a causa del detrimento de las tierras que poco a poco dejaban de producir. Él recuerda tener una infancia en tiempos donde las lluvias eran abundantes y el campo producía suficientes alimentos para las personas y animales. Conforme el crecía, el mundo a su alrededor se veía cada vez menos fructífero, menos milpas, menos frutos, menos pastura para el ganado. A los 22 años se vio forzado a migrar con una visa de trabajo, actualmente tiene 29 años. Andrés ha visto 7 temporadas de cosecha de diferentes frutos en la zona de Florida. El me cuenta que al igual que vio como sus tierras empezaron a “enfermar”, ve como estas tierras empiezan a hacer lo mismo. El tipo de trabajo que hace no le remunera basado en las horas que trabaja si no en la cantidad que cosecha. Cuando él llegó en su primera temporada, los campos producían tanto que le permitian proveer para su familia en méxico. Hoy me cuenta que hay temporadas donde tiene que escoger entre comer decentemente o dar de comer a su familia. Este año fue contratado para cosechar arándanos, él transmite que esta temporada fue difícil porque la cosecha se adelantó y los precios bajaron, consigo el salario de los trabajadores. Así como esto paso esta temporada, es cada vez más común.

Mientras históricamente la temporada de arándanos en Florida empezaba durante el final de Abril a fin de Mayo, cada vez es más común que se adelante la temporada creando problemas económicos para todos. Las lluvias cada vez más presentes durante el invierno provocan que los arándanos florezcan y produzcan frutos más temprano. El invierno cada vez es menos predecible y con temperaturas variadas que pueden proporcionar las condiciones para que el arándano empiece a florecer y cuando se presentan repentinos frentes fríos la producción se ve comprometida. Menos producto significa menos trabajo, menos salario e incrementos en los precios. Por otro lado, si la cosecha logra salvarse del frente frío, entonces la industria se enfrenta a la sobreoferta porque durante los tiempos fuera de la temporada usual, se juntan las importaciones con el producto nacional y crean un exceso de producto, bajando los precios durante el verano y reduciendo las ganancias para los productores y trabajadores. Para cuando se supone que la temporada normal de la cosecha nacional empieza, ya no hay suficiente producto y los precios suben, esto no significa más ganancias para el trabajador ya que en este punto el trabajo fue hecho durante el inicio adelantado.

Como veras, el cambio climático nos afecta a todos. Ejemplos como este existen a través de casi todas las industrias del campo y la ganadería. El cambio climático es un problema que afecta a todos, especialmente a las comunidades más cercanas a la industria, los trabajadores de primera línea. Esta problemática no solo afecta la economía del trabajador y el consumidor, también promueve la migración forzada, la explotación, la inseguridad alimentaria, la pérdida del patrimonio cultural, y muchos otros problemas sociales que impiden la prosperidad del mundo. La diseminación de información que apele a los intereses personales de los diferentes grupos sociales es vital para combatir la problemática. En mi siguiente blog expondré como yo he presentado e interpretado el cambio climático de manera que las personas internalicen el problema y empaticen con individuos fuera de su cultura. 

Esperen mi siguiente blog;

“El cambio climático; un problema que nos conecta.” 

Do you love the beach? Have you ever seen the wonderful jungles portrayed in those exotic NatGeo programs? Or even closer to home, have you sat under a tree at your local park?. Remember those feelings that arise from your inner self as you smell the fresh aromas of spring!. Now think about a planet without forest, prairies, mangroves, or coral reefs. For many people this is a mere scenario or a hoax, the truth is that is a future that is well on its way like a bulldozer eager to demolish our future as if it was the Amazonia. 

Its been almost a month since I started my Scientists In Parks internship at Everglades National Park and I’m here to report how it is going and what I am doing to try to stop the above from happening. My internship consists on the development of programs to inform the different communities of the Miami area about climate change in a culturally relevant way. Often times when people think about climate change, they can feel disengaged and fail to see the direct effects that it has on their lives. My job is to show them that climate change is real, it has a direct effect on their lives, and it is happening now. The Florida peninsula is extremely susceptible to climate change, in particular due to its low elevation and its vulnerable habitats that have been engineered to be more suitable for human use since industrialization. One of the greatest advocates for the conservation efforts of our natural resources in Florida, Joe Podgor, liked to say; “The Everglades is a test. If we pass it, we may get to keep the planet.” The Everglades is one of the most studied natural areas of The United States of America and at the same time it is amongst one of the most disturbed. When he spoke of a test, I believe that he referred to the fact that we have the information. We have studied this habitat and the impacts we have on it, we only need to apply our understandings in order to pass the test. This will show our willingness to work towards a better future where humans and nature can coexist.

Having been here for this long has allowed me to enjoy the beauty of the many areas of the Everglades, but it has also made me wonder how much more astonishing must it have been before human-nature conflicts. I have asked colleagues and fellow Floridians that have been in the area for a long time or even generations in the case of natives, and just as I suspected, the changes in the environment have been greatly noticeable. Our ecosystems depend one variable on the other, changing one would mean the re-adaptation or the collapse of the entire system. The biggest and most understood effect of climate change is sea level rise. Floridians speak on their anecdotes of sea level rise. The level of salt water intrusion in the Everglades is evident as the marsh-mangrove areas expand across the area as a result of salinity increases. This movement has a great impact on the lives of Floridians as the mangrove marsh areas serve as natural filters and barriers between open water and inland. These impacts are what I hope to portray to the different communities of Miami so that they can consciously take decisions in their lifestyles to reduce climate change.

Thank you and please stay on the look out for my next post:

“The people; witnesses of climate change”.