[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”About Next Gen: DO NOT EDIT” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ background_color=”#545480″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”rgba(56,6,6,0.56)” background_color_gradient_end=”#6d344b” background_color_gradient_type=”radial” background_color_gradient_start_position=”76%” background_color_gradient_overlays_image=”on” background_image=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/51330036771_9076b081f3_o.jpg” background_position=”bottom_center” background_blend=”hard-light” custom_padding=”2%|0px|0%|0px||” locked=”off” collapsed=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”To be an American row: DO NOT EDIT” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ custom_margin=”|||” custom_padding=”15px|0px|22px|0px||” custom_padding_tablet=”|0px||” custom_padding_phone=”|0px||” custom_width_px=”1280px” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/newnextgenlogo2018_transp.png” title_text=”newnextgenlogo2018_transp” admin_label=”Next Gen Image” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Project Description” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ text_font_size=”16px” header_font=”|700|on|on|||||” header_font_size=”25px” header_2_font=”Oswald|600||on|||||” header_2_text_align=”left” header_2_text_color=”#E09900″ header_2_font_size=”27px” header_2_line_height=”1.2em” custom_margin=”29px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
We are finding, coaching and training public media\u2019s next generation. This #nprnextgenradio<\/a> project is created in in Tampa, Florida, where six talented reporters are participating in a week-long state-of-the-art training program.<\/span><\/p>\n In this project we are speaking to people to highlight the experiences of people whose lives are being affected by climate change.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Project Description” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ text_font=”||on||||||” text_font_size=”13px” header_font=”|700|on|on|||||” header_font_size=”25px” header_2_font=”Oswald|||on|||||” header_2_text_align=”left” header_2_text_color=”#98bedb” header_2_line_height=”1.2em” custom_margin=”29px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Photo credit: GPA Photo Archive via flickr<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_video src=”https:\/\/youtu.be\/-HVMSXVzMJE” admin_label=”YouTube Video” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_video][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text: Video Teaser” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_font_size=”16px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Elizabeth Eubanks has been the lead gardener at \u201cFrom the Ground Up\u201d community garden for six years. Before that, she taught science for about 20 years. She intertwines her gardening and educating skills to teach members of her community how to grow their own food as climate change and food insecurity threaten the food supply.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”6px||3px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”3px||6px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”HERO IMAGE OPTION 1: Background image: DELETE IF NOT NEEDED” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ background_enable_color=”off” background_image=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/Sierra_Natalia_Animated-3.gif” background_blend=”multiply” custom_margin=”-2px|||||” custom_padding=”12%||39.4%|||” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” title_text=”Sierra_Natalia_Animated 3″ sticky_enabled=”0″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.10″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”6px||3px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”3px||6px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Illustrator credit” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Illustration by Natalia Polanco [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”7px||35px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_post_title date=”off” comments=”off” featured_image=”off” admin_label=”Post Title” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” title_level=”h3″ title_font=”Oswald||||||||” title_font_size=”42px” title_letter_spacing=”2px” title_line_height=”1.2em” meta_text_color=”#04a3e3″ meta_font_size=”18px” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_post_title][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_5,2_5″ _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||12px|||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text 1″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”1.8em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Former school teacher Elizabeth Eubanks brings her classroom skills to a community garden where she educates students and volunteers in how to harvest their own food, a form of resistance against extreme weather patterns and food insecurity.<\/i><\/p>\n \u201cI invite people to really think about whatever their meal is and really think about how many hands have touched it,\u201d Elizabeth Eubanks, lead gardener of \u201cFrom the Ground Up\u201d community garden said. \u201cBecause if I let you harvest your collards right here and right now, and then I go, grab some garlic for you and some herbs and you go home and cook it, that’s one pair of hands. The carbon footprint is reduced and you know exactly where your food came from and what pesticides are on it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n Eubanks has been the lead gardener of \u201cFrom the Ground Up\u201d in Pensacola, Florida for over six years. From seed to dinner plate is a process that Eubanks enjoys teaching to members of her community, welcoming all ages to learn how to grow their food.<\/p>\n During the week, the garden is full of eager community volunteers, not afraid to get their hands dirty as they learn the ins and outs of harvesting.<\/p>\n \u201cWe always need to weed, seed, plant and harvest,\u201d Eubanks said. \u201cThat’s the continuum\u2026 and then recruiting people and bringing them in. So I’m on social media every day, posting hours for the garden and then when the volunteers get here, leading the volunteers. So sometimes I may not get my hands dirty at all, but sometimes that’s all I’m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n The 172 x 160 foot garden located just under Interstate 10 in Downtown Pensacola is full of fruits, vegetables and herbs.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s winter and our brassicas are in full bloom. We have collards everywhere, we have herbs like dill. The weather has been unseasonably warm, so we still have peppers in the garden, which could be unusual for a regular winter in Zone 9A. We have lots of lettuces, we have roots and carrots and radishes and beets and turnips all started. We have my favorite thing, mirliton, and that is a vegetable. The heirloom variety is called Papa Sylvest, and it came from New Orleans, which is my hometown.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.5.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_audio audio=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/SLyons_MASTER.mp3″ title=”LISTEN: ‘We always need to weed, seed, plant and harvest…'” artist_name=”Sierra Lyons” album_name=”Next Generation Radio | Florida Newsroom | January 2022″ image_url=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/SIERRA-01.jpg” admin_label=”Story Audio” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”rgba(0,174,239,0.84)” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_audio][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/SIERRA-11.jpg” alt=”\u00d2The American dream is not my Indigenous dream. It’s so different than that,\u00d3 Jolie Varela said. \u00d2As an Indigenous woman, I would like to see our ceremonies restored, our traditions restored, our homelands restored, and our land back. When people come from other places and they come in the name of this American dream or in pursuit of this American dream, I don’t think they realize how that American dream erases Indigenous people, and further infringes upon our rights as Native people.\u00d3 (Photo by Jarrette Werk)” title_text=”SIERRA-11″ align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”Image 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Caption 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Elizabeth Eubanks holds her favorite crop, mirlitons. The heirloom variety is called \u201cPapa Sylvest,\u201d a vegetable native to New Orleans, her hometown. Eubanks spends anywhere from 10 to 50 hours in the garden per week, depending on the season. (Photo by Sierra Lyons)<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/SIERRA-03.jpg” alt=”\u00d2The American dream is not my Indigenous dream. It’s so different than that,\u00d3 Jolie Varela said. \u00d2As an Indigenous woman, I would like to see our ceremonies restored, our traditions restored, our homelands restored, and our land back. When people come from other places and they come in the name of this American dream or in pursuit of this American dream, I don’t think they realize how that American dream erases Indigenous people, and further infringes upon our rights as Native people.\u00d3 (Photo by Jarrette Werk)” title_text=”SIERRA-03″ align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”Image 1″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Caption 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n The garden\u2019s number one rule, \u201cDo no harm,\u201d is boldly plastered at the entrance of the 172 x 160-foot garden. The space is also a venue for community events such as concerts and art markets. (Photo by Sierra Lyons)<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”3px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”1.8em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Since stepping into her role, Eubanks had taken pride in starting her own seedlings. But after an unusually wet September and October, her seedlings were over-saturated and she had to purchase plants for the first time.<\/p>\n Hurricane Ida swept through the eastern United States in August and September 2021. And although Pensacola was not directly hit, it did leave minor damage to the garden, downing some of their trellises. September and October were two of the rainiest months of 2021 in Pensacola, according to precipitation records from the National Weather Service.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI came into work one day and the banana trees, half of them, had fallen, and that had never happened before. We’re in Hurricane Alley\u2026I think having multitudes of hurricanes is something to consider.\u201d<\/p>\n With extreme weather patterns increasing globally, gardening is a form of resistance and protection as climate change impacts food production.<\/p>\n Before she was the lead gardener, Eubanks taught science in Palm Beach County for about 20 years to students ranging from elementary to high school. Pensacola became her place of rest when not teaching, and after strolling past the garden on her daily walks, she began volunteering. After three months, she was asked to step into her current role and she happily obliged. Her bachelor\u2019s of science degree in zoology and master\u2019s degree in education makes her a well-rounded candidate for not only running a garden but also teaching volunteers with varying skill levels.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text 4a” _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”1.8em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I think about some of the people here that I love to work with, it’s at-risk families or already stressed families. So if they’re already insecure with where they live or if they have food insecurities or clothing insecurities, anything like that is just going to get a lot bigger as time goes on. The more that I can educate people, I can educate you. Then you’re going to hopefully take that out into your community or you’re going to tell people and come learn from the garden.\u201d<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/floridanewsroom2022.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2022\/01\/Feeding-America-Map.jpg” alt=”\u00d2The American dream is not my Indigenous dream. It’s so different than that,\u00d3 Jolie Varela said. \u00d2As an Indigenous woman, I would like to see our ceremonies restored, our traditions restored, our homelands restored, and our land back. When people come from other places and they come in the name of this American dream or in pursuit of this American dream, I don’t think they realize how that American dream erases Indigenous people, and further infringes upon our rights as Native people.\u00d3 (Photo by Jarrette Werk)” title_text=”Feeding America Map” align_tablet=”center” align_phone=”” align_last_edited=”on|desktop” admin_label=”Image 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Caption 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n According to Feeding America, Escambia County, where Pensacola is located, had a child food insecurity rate of over 20% in 2019, according to data from Feeding America.<\/a> That results in 13,200 or 1 in 5 children going hungry in the county. (Infographic courtesy of Feeding America<\/a>.)<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text 2″ _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”1.8em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n As droughts, extreme temperatures and high CO2 levels impact crops for major farms in the United States, residential gardening is a means of survival. Eubanks says preparation is her best defense against climate change because extreme weather conditions will only increase as time goes on.<\/p>\n \u201cI get educated and share with youth and teach them how to educate. I stay actively involved with groups that I have participated in: teacher-researcher experiences with like NOAA Teacher at Sea, PolarTREC, and Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) Earth Programs. I also lead youth into creating their own research projects in order to present at these conferences in a professional manner. They become empowered advocates for our planet and get to present to peers and professional scientists.\u201d<\/p>\n Eubanks encourages students to bring their newly gained knowledge back to their communities.<\/p>\n \u201cI want people to travel, I want them to see the world, I want them to get out there. But at the same time, not to be a conflict of interest, I want them to focus on what’s in their community and buying local, supporting local people.\u201d<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_5,2_5″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_code _builder_version=”4.14.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
<\/em><\/p>\n\n