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We meet Fran Mainella, the new Director of the Alliance for Florida's National Parks. The 20-year-old nonprofit works to promote the Everglades, Dry Tortugas and Biscayne National Parks, as well as Big Cypress National Preserve. Its website says their goal is “to instill in all people an appreciation of Florida's public lands and natural resources for what they are – the key to the sustainability and prosperity of the state - by enriching the park experience and connecting diverse communities to the nature that abounds in their backyards.”

Found on the northern end of Marco Island in 1896 during an expedition led by a renowned archeologist named Frank Hamilton Cushing, the Key Marco Cat is considered a true gem — a once in a lifetime, or more, find — discovered during the early days of the science of archeology. Just six inches tall and carved out of some sort of hardwood, the Cat, and the many other objects that were discovered alongside it, represent the most comprehensive and spectacular collection of pre-Columbian Native American material culture ever discovered in Florida.

In the weeks after Hurricane Ian a year ago, Florida deployed the first-ever State Emergency Response Mental Health Task Force. It was comprised of mental health professionals including therapists, counselors, and massage therapists who worked directly with residents and first responders who were still in the midst of recovery. Now, almost exactly one year post-Ian, the Task Force has been deployed a second time to help people in the panhandle who were impacted by Hurricane Idalia.

While the medical community continues to look for ways to help reduce the risk of dementia, researchers at University of South Florida have been studying whether interacting with certain kinds of specially designed cognitive training exercises — essentially computer games — can reduce the risk of dementia. We learn about another USF study called Active Mind that is similar, but is looking for participants who do have some degree of mild cognitive impairment.

Florida Gulf Coast University is hosting a virtual debate today on Affirmative Action in University Admissions and the Cost of Higher Education. The debate participants are Dr. Cornel West, he is a progressive professor and author, and currently an Independent candidate for president; and Robert George is a conservative legal scholar and political philosopher, and Founding Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University. The debate is moderated by Dr. Christopher Phillips. Dr. Phillips has devoted his life to facilitating thoughtful and inclusive conversations among people of all walks of life, from all around the world, about deep and meaningful issues.

Antisemitism has been on the rise in the United States for about the past two decades – and 2021 was the highest year on record for documented reports of violence, harassment, and vandalism directed toward Jews. That’s according to data from the nonprofit Anti-Defamation League, which has been actively monitoring and documenting incidents of antisemitism and publishing this information since 1979. We go back into history to add some context to the world we find ourselves in, to an incident that unfolded in France in the late 1800s and early 1900s known as The Dreyfus Affair.

The nonprofit Guardian ad Litem Foundation for the 20th Judicial Circuit has been supporting court appointed volunteers, and the children they’re working with, since 1983. And now, it’s expanding its focus to serve a broader group of children and teens in Southwest Florida and has changed its name to A.N.A.’s Friends. The acronym represents the Abused, Neglected, and Abandoned youth they help support. They support children who need help in a wide variety of ways that goes far beyond just helping them in the courtroom.

While the medical community continues to look for ways to help reduce the risk of dementia, researchers at University of South Florida have been studying whether interacting with certain kinds of specially designed cognitive training exercises — essentially computer games — can reduce the risk of dementia. We learn about another USF study called Active Mind that is similar, but is looking for participants who do have some degree of mild cognitive impairment.

William B. Taylor served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine from 2006 to 2009 during the George W. Bush and Barack Obama presidencies. He’s been vice president, Europe and Russia at the U.S. Institute of Peace since 2015. It’s a federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. He returned to Ukraine in 2019 to serve as Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. embassy in Kyiv after President Donald Trump fired the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch. He remained in that role until early January of 2020. Ambassador Taylor was in town to give a talk for the Naples Council on World Affairs titled "600-plus Days of Battle with Volodymyr and Vladimir."

While it might be easy to say that we should all be more compassionate and kind, and have empathy for everyone around us, it’s usually not something that comes easily or naturally for most of us, and can even be seen as a sign of weakness in our highly competitive culture. As we start another year, we’re having a conversation about the importance of compassion, kindness, and empathy through the lens of Florida Gulf Coast University’s Roots of Compassion and Kindness (ROCK) Center. It's dedicated to teaching college students about compassion, using insights from psychologists, philosophers, neuroscientists, and scholars from across disciplines. We're joined by its Director and two of its faculty members.