Join host Jeff Corwin on an adventure across central Florida to connect with the giant manatee! This weekend Jeff uncovers the harsh realities manatees face in the wild and works with

Join host Jeff Corwin on an adventure across central Florida to connect with the giant manatee! This weekend Jeff uncovers the harsh realities manatees face in the wild and works with conservationists who are racing to save this iconic species. To learn more about the wildlife featured in the episode, visit www.defenders.org/wildlifenation Video Transcript: Jeff Corwin: Today's conservation mission begins in central Florida, home to the stunningly beautiful Silver River. Jeff Corwin: Just look how clean the water is here. We can see in some cases, right to the bottom 20 plus feet deep. We can see the various fish species milling about, big river turtles and large mouth bass. All of them sharing this vital habitat. Jeff Corwin: I'm here with Liz Neville from Defenders of Wildlife. Their mission is to help protect and restore Florida's wetland wilderness. Jeff Corwin: This is old wild Florida, isn't it? Liz Neville: It is, Jeff. This to me is the reason to come to Florida. It's beautiful. The peace that I feel from being out here is unlike anything else. Jeff Corwin: The Silver River flows into the mighty Ocklawaha River at the heart of the great Florida riverway. This vast 217 mile system of rivers and springs flows north from central Florida to the Atlantic Ocean. It is critical habitat to countless species, including manatees. Manatees are big, typically 10 feet long and weighing around a thousand pounds. They're curious, slow moving, and spend most of the day grazing on seagrass. Jeff Corwin: They're also constantly migrating through Florida's rivers and coastal habitats to survive. The greatest long term threat to manatees is a loss of warm water habitat and restoring more areas of natural warm water habitat will ensure the manatee's future. The beauty about Silver River is that it has a relatively constant temperature. So when we get those very dangerous cold snaps, which happen here in Florida in winter, manatees can come here and survive. Jeff Corwin: Unfortunately, many manatees are cut off from places like Silver River due to manmade barriers. The Kirkpatrick Dam is a good example. It was built in the 1960s and has obstructed the large scale migration of manatees ever since. Restoring a free flowing Ocklawaha River will not only give manatees better access to Silver River and Silver Springs, but will also provide them with essential, warm water winter habitat and many of Ocklawaha's 20 freshwater Springs, which are currently not accessible due to high water levels from the dam. Jeff Corwin: The reality is there are decisions that happened decades ago that are impacting the environmental integrity of Florida today. Liz Neville: Jeff, it's really about coexistence at the end of the day. So much of the appeal of living in Florida is the beautiful natural environment and the wildlife that we have. So the key to continuing a survival of species and also ensuring a good human quality of life is to work with nature and not against her. Jeff Corwin: In recent years, Florida waterways have seen a dramatic increase in harmful algae blooms. These algae blooms are killing other native vegetation that provide food to manatees and other species. Tragically today, more manatees are dying than any other time in Florida's recorded history. Conservationists are racing to save this keystone species before it's too late.

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Changing the Rules - Jojo Mehta in conversation with Jonathon Porritt

Jojo Mehta, co-founder of the Stop Ecocide campaign, in conversation with renowned veteran environmentalist and author

Changing the Rules - Jojo Mehta in conversation with Jonathon Porritt

Jojo Mehta, co-founder of the Stop Ecocide campaign, in conversation with renowned veteran environmentalist and author Jonathon Porritt (whose new book Hope in Hell comes out this month) on World Environment Day 2020. Jonathon brings the wisdom and understanding of decades addressing the environmental and climate crisis at NGO and government level, while Jojo has applied her activism, communication and leadership experience to growing the legacy of her long-term working partner and friend, the visionary lawyer the late Polly Higgins. From criminal law to state policy to everyday action, this is a frank yet fundamentally optimistic dialogue on the rules we must change to address - and transform - the world we face. Find out more about Stop Ecocide here. 

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In the talk, Mohammed will be focusing on how necessary is it to re-frame the environmental education curriculum while also bringing up interesting topics such as lake studies, environmentally

In the talk, Mohammed will be focusing on how necessary is it to re-frame the environmental education curriculum while also bringing up interesting topics such as lake studies, environmentally hazardous substances, and letting us humans reflect on who wants to be what in the future. He urges a change in the environmental education system, as we have no more spare time to consume the resources and produce carbon footprints as we did in the past. Life-long passionate teacher, educational administrator, molecular biology and conservation biology enthusiast. Growing up under the blue sky with six season in eastern India, Mohammed has found his love for nature since a very young age. Currently, Mohammed is living in UWC Changshu China and still continuing to enhance his knowledge on educational leadership, molecular and conservation biology. From talking about “galvanized slavery” to his recent research and study on the effects of education and the environment, Mohammed is keen on sharing to the younger generations on his thoughts on the effectiveness and importance of environmental education. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

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Thierry Vrain, a retired soil biologist and former head of a molecular biology department, spent his career engineering nematode resistance in crops. In retirement, as a gardener, he gained a deeper understanding of soil ecosystems.

Observing public concern about food safety, Vrain, with his expertise in genetic engineering, felt compelled to act. He has joined a campaign to educate consumers about potential health issues reported in recent scientific literature.

More information is available here.

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