The next time someone says something to you about “business leading the way” in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and building a sustainable future, email him a copy of the Florida Chamber Foundation’s latest blueprint for transitioning the Sunshine State into a 21st Century leader.
The report, “New Cornerstone Revisited,” was rightfully derided by at least one Florida newspaper for making “recommendations that could have been lifted from almost any generic development report.” Worse still, though, the report gave practically no attention to two major trends: climate change and water scarcity.
The potentially greatest threats to the state’s economic viability received only scant mentions on page 50 of the 60-page report. The document gives a one-sentence nod to Gov. Charlie Crist’s initiative to begin reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and refers to the need for long-term water and energy strategies just as briefly.
OK, the report was designed to update a previous economic study and assess the state’s progress in the three years since the last report came out. But it also set out to “identify priorities for future action by Florida’s public and private leaders” and “identify issues and opportunities that have emerged in importance since 2003.”
In that regard, the “New Cornerstone Revisited” study has as much right to say “mission accomplished” as W did while perched on the deck of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln in 2003. Rather than be a Grinch about it, though, I’m asking Santa to bring each member of the foundation a copy of Tufts’ University’s latest study on “Florida and Climate Change,” as well as a virtual tour of the Southeast’s drought conditions. Both are not only far more illuminating that the foundation’s report, but more PC (and eco-friendly) than the stereotypical lump of coal.
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Shirley Siluk Gregory
Shirley Siluk Gregory, a transplanted Chicagoan now living in Northwest Florida, represents the progressive half of Green Options' Red, Green and Blue segment. She holds a bachelor's degree in Geological Sciences from Northwestern University but graduated in 1984, just when the market for geologists was flatter than the Florida landscape. Just as well, though: she had little interest in spending her life either in a laboratory or, heaven forbid, an oil field. So, of course, she went into journalism. After extremely low-paying but fun and educational stints at several suburban Chicago weeklies and dailies, Shirley and her then-boyfriend/now-husband Scott found themselves displaced by a media buyout and spending the next several years working as freelancers. Among their credits: The Chicago Tribune, a publication for the manufactured-housing industry, and Web Hosting Magazine, a now-defunct publication that came and went with the dotcom era. Shirley's always been concerned about nature and conservation (and an avid pack-rat, as her family can attest to), but became even more rabidly interested in the environment primarily due to two factors: the growing signs that global warming was real and threatening, and the birth of her son, Noah, in 2003. Suddenly, the prospect of a world that might not be quite as habitable in 40 or 50 years took on a whole new, and personal, meaning. Living where she lives now also helped light the fire of Shirley's environmental awareness: her hometown was severely damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, and beaten up again by Hurricane Dennis in 2005. That, and the fact that she and her family were vacationing in New Orleans until the day before Katrina -- and spent 12 hours driving home for a trip that normally takes 3 -- has made Shirley deeply appreciate how fragile our lifestyles are, and how dependent they are on sound management of natural resources and sustainable living practices. That's why she's become a passionate reader and writer about all things green and sustainable.
One Response to Businesses Blindly “Lead the Way” for Florida
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I could not agree with you more. I have been blogging about the environment for three years and watching the awareness blossom in other places around the US. But Florida seems to be in the dark ages when it comes to climate change and sustainable issues. Glad to see another Floridian speaking about the lack of concern by the community at large over environmental issues. It’s like we are “asleep.” WAKE UP FLORIDA!