|
Leaving the bears of Ocala for the cows of Okeechobee
by Frank Powell and Zachary Prusak, Class XIX NRLI Fellows
(photo credits: Cacee Hilliard, Class XIX NRLI Fellow)
Welcome to 2020! Leaving the bears of Ocala for the cows of Okeechobee, the NRLI Class XIX fellows put on their cowboy hats and headed south for session five's week of farms, water quality, learning the dynamics of groups, and how to better facilitate meetings. Did we mention cows?
The overall objectives for this session included recognizing group dynamics and how they impact meetings, learning how to design productive participatory meetings, understanding the role of the facilitator, and reflecting on our progress so far.
Why were there cows on the large tear sheets? Well, agriculture plays a very important role in Florida economics, politics, and impacts to the environment. With so many stakeholders in play, there has always been real and perceived conflicts between the farmers/ranchers and their way of life and the impact on water quality.
We started the session with overall views, from
the broad linkages (and by the way, Disney attorneys will be calling whoever drew the Mickey Mouse on the flipchart) all the way down to the alphabet soup of water quality science (TMDL, BMAPS, MFL, etc.) with stakeholders caught in the middle (snowbirds, local economy, and dairy farmers).
Our first group exercise was a fun one involving a small group of us role-playing the typical types you encounter in most meetings. Ultimately, we had to sacrifice the one participant with the broken leg. We also listed traits of a bad meeting, and quickly realized that every one of us has been in a bad meeting!
We discussed the important role of the facilitator, who we realize is an amazing person. This position must design and manage the process, monitor time, pay attention to task and maintenance functions, fill missing roles, and recognize/embrace the groan zones, help groups move through them....truly a herculean task!
For the most effective functioning of groups, we talked about the "bicycle model," where the two roles were group maintenance and tasks.
Thursday started early and opened with a visit to Milking R Dairy, the Ruck family's farm, where the fellows learned about the dairy industry, and had fierce debates about the best ice cream (for the record, Maple Bacon).
What an amazing experience and an illustration of how best management practices are utilized in the Lake Okeechobee Watersh
ed. What a great family to spend the morning with. As a bonus, we witnessed a calf being born!
We then had lunch at the Herbert Hoover Dike which surrounds Lake Okeechobee; thanks to the City of Okeechobee and the donors of the tent that we had lunch under. We also had the opportunity to walk along the lake and enjoy the dock and boardwalk.
We returned to the hotel meeting room for the stakeholder panel which consisted of Ben Butler (SFWMD board, dairy farm owner), David Royal (TNC, nutrient 4 R's) and Gary Ritter (Florida Farm Bureau). It was nice to hear from all three of the panelists as they provided their perspectives of agriculture, best management practices, and water quality. We really enjoyed their open and transparent communication.
 The highlight of Thursday evening was a visit to the Southern Accent Farm, where we were treated to a full-on steak dinner sponsored by the Okeechobee Cattleman's Association and Okeechobee Farm Bureau. Perhaps the best sweet potatoes and banana pudding
ever. The swamp c
abbage was a major hit, but the most remarkable experience was celebrating the 65th wedding anniversary with the Bass family. What an awesome example of family and fellowship. Thursday ending with some enjoying Applebee's again while others worked throughout the night. What a long day!
Friday started with some practicum discussions, groan zoning and decision-making exercises. The teams had an opportunity to have some breakout sessions to work on their practicum agendas and old people versus the young people worked on some NRLI timelines, somehow dinosaurs made it on the list. We wrapped up the day with the session review, feedback panel and the look ahead. It's always great to see the talented actors in the group perform their skits. We said our good-byes, enjoyed the takeaway lunch and departed from the experience of Okeechobee. See you in Sebring later this month!
|
Alumni Shout-Outs
Thanks in no small part to the help of NRLI alumni [
Pictured above, from left to right: Audrey Kuipers (Class XVI), Tyler Beck (Class XVI), Staci Simmons (XVIII), Vanessa Bessey (Class XVIII), and Project Team Member Wendy-Lin Bartels (Class III)], the January session in Okeechobee was a resounding success. Thank you!
|
DEP intra-agency training
The NRLI project team is preparing for the second session of the specialized "Effectively Engaging DEP Stakeholders" intra-agency training. This year's group is the third cohort (pictured above at Session 1 in January) and we can't wait to get back at it for session two at the end of this month!
|
|
Join us for a special alumni gathering focused on forestry next month in Quincy.
|
We are starting to receive applications for NRLI Class 20 so encourage potential applicants to get their materials in asap!
Please help recruit promising candidates - make phone calls, send emails, post on social media, and/or whatever else you can think of!
Here are some links to share:
The deadline to apply is March 31, 2020.
Thank you for all you do!
|
|
Getting to Know Class XIX Fellows
Katelyn Cucinotta
Analyst, Office of Resilience, Palm Beach County
Katelyn
Cucinotta is an analyst for Palm Beach County's Office of Resilience with a background in coastal conservation, wildlife policy, renewable energy, and environmental science. Katelyn holds a B.S. in Environmental Science and Policy with a minor in Geospatial Science from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg and an M.A. in Marine and Coastal Studies from Nova Southeastern University. Throughout her studies, Katelyn focused on anthropogenic impacts on the marine environment, climate change, and how to effectively communicate science to inspire others.
After working for the federal government, a non-profit organization, academia, and the corporate sector, Katelyn is thrilled to be putting her knowledge and passion to work in the County she calls home. For the Office of Resilience, Katelyn focuses her efforts on coastal adaptation, developing a countywide Resilience Action Plan, and geospatial studies.
Cacee Hilliard
CARES Coordinator, Florida Farm Bureau Federation
Cacee Hilliard is the CARES Coordinator for Florida Farm Bureau Federation. CARES, also known as This Farm CARES, is an environmental stewardship recognition program that publicly recognizes farmers/ranchers who demonstrate exemplary efforts to protect natural resources by implementing Best Management Practices. Since 2017, she has been responsible for administering program objectives, including recognitions of farmers/ranchers statewide as well as public relations to raise awareness for agricultural environmental stewardship.
A sixth generation Floridian, Cacee grew up in Arcadia around beef cattle and citrus and was active in the FFA, developing a passion for agriculture early on. She is a proud University of Florida alum and received a bachelor's degree in Agricultural Education and Communication and minor in Soil and Water Science. Just after graduating college and prior to working for Farm Bureau, she taught high school agriculture and was the FFA Advisor in Baker and Marion Counties for five years.
She currently resides in Williston with her husband, Jordan Hilliard. NRLI has been an extra special experience for Cacee because she has been expecting her first child since session 1. Hayes Christian Hilliard is set to arrive in April just a few days shy of NRLI graduation! #BonusNRLIFellow
Marjorie Karter
Program Consultant, Division of State Lands, Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Marjorie Karter is a Program Consultant with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Division of State Lands (DSL). For the past 19 years, she has held various real estate positions within DEP which included buying, selling, exchanging and leasing land. She was also a Senior Cabinet Aide with the Office of Cabinet Affairs. Currently, Marjorie purchases conservation land through the Florida Forever acquisition program and is the DSL acquisition liaison for the Florida Communities Trust grant program. Marjorie holds B.S. degrees in Finance and Real Estate from Florida State University's College of Business. When not at work, she enjoys working on home improvement projects, gardening, creating art, and exploring new places.
|
|
Class XIX Fellows
Chris Cason
Equipment Operations/Engineering Tech/Law Enforcement Officer, U.S. Forest Service
Matthew Chopp
Regional Public Hunting Areas Biologist, Wild Hog Issues Specialist, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission
Ben Christ
Researcher, UF - SPARC USDA
Katelyn Cucinotta
Environmental Analyst, Office of Resilience, Palm Beach County
Ben Glass
Community Affairs Manager, Suwannee River Water Management District
Kathleen Greenwood
Environmental Consultant, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Elizabeth Guthrie
Stewardship Director, North Florida Land Trust
Cacee Hilliard
CARES Coordinator, Florida Farm Bureau
Marjorie Karter
Program Consultant, Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Mark Lotz
Biological Scientist III, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission
Katrina Moseley
Owner/Operator, family cattle & hay farm
Mulit-family Housing & Loan Specialist, USDA Rural Development
Melissa Nasuti
Biologist, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Planning Division
Sara Owen
Deputy City Manager, City of Lake Butler
Scott Pearce
Law Enforcement Captain, Marine Law Administrator, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Frank Powell
Assistant Deputy Secretary of Ecosystems Restoration, Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Zachary Prusak
Central Florida Program Manager/Florida Fire Manager, The Nature Conservancy
Andrew Rappe
Assistant Director, Ordway-Swisher Biological Station, UF/IFAS
Norma Samuel
Extension Agent IV, Florida-Friendly Landscaping & Urban Horticulture, UF/IFAS Extension
Tiffany Trent
Environmental Scientist IV, St Johns River Water Management District
Matt Warren
Environmental Manager, Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Office of Agricultural Water Policy
Ana Zangroniz
Extension Agent, UF/IFAS Sea Grant
Class XVIII Schedule
|
Dates
|
Topic |
Location |
| August 21-23, 2019 |
Impacts of Port Expansion |
Fort Lauderdale |
| September 25-27, 2019 |
Beach Renourishment |
Niceville |
| October 23-25, 2019 |
Water Quality & Estuary Health |
Fort Myers |
| November 20-22, 2019 |
Wildlife Management: Florida Black Bear |
Ocala |
| January 22-24, 2020 |
Agriculture & Water Quality |
Okeechobee |
| February 19-21, 2020 |
Lake Istokpoga Management |
Sebring |
| March 18-20, 2020 |
Forestry |
Quincy |
|
April 15-17, 2020
|
Graduation & Practicum Presentations |
Gainesville |
|
|
#NRLI #NRLIrocks #NRLIalum
|
|
|
