How do we monitor change in key ecosystems?

It’s easy to joke about Florida. The crystal meth, the bozo criminals, the exotic-animal attacks—all of this and more has made it a hotbed of weirdness that more than justifies the existence of the Florida Man Twitter account. But the oddities of the Sunshine State tend to eclipse its many achievements, including Miami’s progressive efforts to adapt to the effects of climate change. That’s a huge topic discussed by host Doug Parsons and this week’s guest, Dr. Evelyn Gaiser. As lead principal investigator at the Florida Coastal Everglades Long Term Ecological Research Program, she has her finger on the pulse of the state’s constantly morphing ecology. That makes her a crucial resource for anyone worried about climate change. Even though she’s obviously concerned about the problems that severe weather presents to humankind, she also gets infectiously excited when talking about preserving the wetlands and how Miami is changing its infrastructure to plan for the future. It’s refreshing to hear someone from the scientific community value enthusiasm and optimism over dread. As America Adapts posits with all of its episodes, that’s an important part of making people feel motivated enough to adapt to climate change themselves.