Our climate is changing and we are witnessing the effects playing out in real time: heatwaves, rising seas, intense hurricanes, wildfires and the melting of glaciers to name just a few. So when it's your job to track and report the weather, these unnatural occurrences are hard to ignore. Luckily for us, we have NBC6 Chief Meteorologist John Morales not only preparing us for hurricanes but also the stark reality that is climate change.
John has been fascinated with hurricanes and the weather ever since he was a young boy growing up in Puerto Rico. After tracking Hurricane David in 1979, which passed just south of the island and ravaged the Dominican Republic, John decided he would pursue a career in meteorology. Years later as a seasoned and well-respected meteorologist, his beloved island would find itself on a collision course with Hurricane Maria and this time it would not be spared. Knowing just how serious of a threat this hurricane posed to the people of Puerto Rico, he did a Facebook Live video (now with close to 1 million views) warning them on what they could expect and helping them brace for impact.
John is the longest tenured broadcast meteorologist in South Florida and has been a trusted source for many when it comes to hurricane coverage. He is also one of the first meteorologists to use his platform to speak about climate change and it’s role in affecting and intensifying our weather. And considering Miami is ground zero when it comes to climate change, we are lucky to have John championing this cause.
We hope you enjoy the conversation,
Alex and Jeanette
Think about this for a moment: a child born today can expect oceans to rise one to four feet in their lifetimes; Miami is projected to experience over a foot of sea level rise by the year 2050 and anywhere from 10 to 30 feet by the end of the century. Add to this that not a single viable solution has been proposed that would keep Miami above water at current sea level rise projections, then the fact that Miami will likely one day be underwater should start to sink in, pun intended. That is the reality of climate change. Whether you choose to believe it or not, we're already feeling and seeing its effects and here in Miami where we sit upon porous limestone, the future of our city is at great risk.
That's why filmmakers Jimmy Evans and Jack Edmondson decided to make Urban Paradise, to bring awareness to a topic that effects everyone yet is so misunderstood and downplayed by many. The film follows Sam Van Leer, the charismatic environmentalist and founder of Urban Paradise Guild (UPG) whose single organizing principle is to fight the causes and effects of climate change in order to protect Miami's future. Sam has been planting mangroves both at sea level and above it for the past 10 years in order to protect our communities from massive inundations of water and he's very vocal about trying to enact changes and policies that will help mitigate the inevitability of climate change and all its causes. In Urban Paradise you'll learn more about Sam and why UPG's work is so important and you'll hear from other climate change experts explain sea level rise and how it is and will continue to effect Miami.
For their first feature length film, Jimmy and Jack do not shy away from taking on such a contentious issue that is only now beginning to get more recognition in the public sphere. We hope Urban Paradise and this conversation will only help in continuing to move this topic to the forefront so we can all be better prepared to face this global crisis.
We hope you enjoy the conversation,
Alex and Jeanette
For behind the scenes show notes, videos, photos and more visit www.plantedinmiami.com
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