Category Archives: Florida

“Surreal” Sharks: Learning From The Best

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I am excited to share that the Xploration Awesome Planet episode staring iconic explorer/adventurer Philippe Cousteau and featuring the University of Miami’s Dr. Neil Hammerschlag and his Shark Research and Conservation Program team and Predatory Ecology Lab dropped nationally today on the FOX network.

The episode, shot in Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic waters off Miami, focuses on Dr. Hammerschlag’s research work with sharks, as well as showing that these majestic creatures are not the scary ‘monsters’ depicted in movies and books but are important parts of our planet’s ecosystem.

Aside from my incredible love for sharks, this episode was especially meaningful to me because I was with Philippe and Neil that day (please see the blog that I wrote earlier this year entitled We’re Going to Need a Bigger Boat about this amazing experience by clicking here) and was actually featured in the piece when Philippe interviewed me as I worked to measure one shark and perform various experiments on the boat’s transom.

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As I said during the episode on television today, being with two of my science heroes and the sharks was “surreal.” As I also said, the experience “brings everything we learned in the classroom into the real world and that everything actually matters and that it’s all real.”

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I have been privileged to participate in five University of Miami shark tagging adventures but to be with Dr. Hammerschlag and his team plus Philippe Cousteau from EarthEcho (and on whose International Youth Leadership Council I serve as a member) was something that I will never forget.

Thanks to my school, Palmer Trinity School, and especially the program’s sponsor, Dr. Caroline Hammerschlag, for allowing us to spend the day with the Shark Research and Conservation program to learn from everyone on board, as well as to conduct some super cool hands-on science on these magnificent creatures.
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Thanks to Philippe, Neil and the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science for an amazing experience and for again showing the world that these incredible creatures are not so scary after all!

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A September to Remember

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As the warmest summer on record nears an end, this month is shaping up to be a “September to Remember” for The Sink or Swim Project. I want to update everyone on a few of the amazing events that we will be participating in as we continue to publicly discuss the risks that South Florida faces from global warming and especially sea level rise, as well as possible solutions such as the need to dramatically increase the use of solar power and other sustainable energy solutions as we transition away from the use of fossil fuel before it’s too late. With these important topics in mind I hope you will join us at one or more of these events or, at the very least, join the discussion;

States-Event-Graphic-21. Climate Change Discussion & Round Table with John Podesta, Chairman Hillary for America / 2:30 PM, Monday, September 12th / Key Biscayne, Florida

John Podesta, Chief of Staff for Former Secretary of State and current Democratic candidate for the Presidency of the United States, Hillary Clinton, will lead a Round Table discussion on Climate Change on the 12th at 2:30 PM at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science (RSMAS) Auditorium and I am so very humbled to have been invited to participate in this important discussion along with some of our region’s leading scientists, lawmakers and clean energy entrepreneurs.

Thanks to Susan Glickman from the Southern Alliance on Clean Energy for inviting me to attend and to the University of Miami RSMAS campus for hosting this important discussion. To learn more about the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, please visit: http://www.cleanenergy.org/. To Learn more about the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science please click visit:http://www.rsmas.miami.edu/. To learn more about Mr. Podesta, please visit:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Podesta.

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2. Secretary John Kerry & The United States Department of State / Our Oceans Conference  /  Thursday & Friday, September 15th and 16th / Washington D.C.

I am thankful to be a member of Philippe Cousteau’s inaugural EarthEcho Youth Leadership Council and in that capacity will be attending the 2016 Our Ocean One Future Leadership Summit at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. on the 15th and 16th.  During our time together I will visit the Ocean Conservancy to discuss ocean policy, attend the Our Ocean One Future Summit, visit Capitol Hill, and hear Secretary of State John Kerry conduct a Town Hall.

Secretary Kerry will be hosting the 2016 Our Oceans Conference and in doing so plans to call today’s youth to action to protect our worlds’ waters and its inhabitants. The Conference shall focus on threats to our oceans in four areas including; Marine Protected Areas, Climate Change,  Sustainable Fisheries and Marine Pollution. Speaking of Secretary Kerry, to watch a video he has made related to the event and the importance of our oceans, click here.

The learn more about The Our Oceans, One Future Leadership Summit visit http://ourocean2016.org/#event.

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3. Smithsonian Water Ways Lecture / 6 PM, Friday, September 16th / Miami Springs, Florida

The Florida Humanities Council has selected the historic Curtis Mansion here in Miami Springs as one of six locations to host the 2016-2017 Smithsonian Exhibit ‘Water/Ways’ (http://curtissmansion.com/MoMS/) and on Friday September 16th at 6:00 PM The Sink or Swim Project will be presenting a lecture on global warming and sea level rise entitled Sink or Swim For Kids (Of All Ages).  Following our talk we will also be answering questions on a range of global warming topics from the audience.

You can learn more about the event by clicking here or visiting (http://curtissmansion.com/delaney-reynolds-sink-or-swim-for-kids-of-all-ages/) and I hope you will join us, as well as tell your friends and family to come out for what should be a fun night.

Please consider following The Sink or Swim Project on social media (Twitter, Instagram or Facebook), as well as sharing our work with a friend or two. The work ahead of us to protect our planet is both sizable and significant but, together, we can make a difference. For your support of our work, and reading, thanks so much!

A TEDx Talk Mother’s Day Gift

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I am humbled and excited to share with you that the video for the TEDx Talk that I gave on sea level rise earlier this year has just been released and I cannot think of a better day to share it with everyone than Mother’s Day.

The reason that sharing this with you today is so appropriate is because of the wonderful support that my mother (and father and brother) has given to me is beyond anything that I could have hoped for and is part of the reason that The Sink or Swim Project has touched thousands of people in such a short time.

I sincerely hope that you will share this TEDx Talk with as many people as possible. The topic and the message are very important to South Florida, our country, and our planet. As you will see, the talk focuses on the fact that our planet is warming, seas are rising, that we must and can overcome political obstacles that protect old habits, and that the children of my generation “get it” and will demand solutions, as well as lead the way during our lifetimes to implement them.

Thank you to my mother for all of her love and support and happy Mother’s Day to your moms. The love of a mother is like no other and should be cherished, and that includes cherishing our environment and Mother Earth.

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