Wednesday, January 16, 2019

So proud of two of my newer friends, Morgan Knowles and Cat Uden, for their selfless, enthusiastic and imaginative efforts to keep Broward residents' eyes on the #Environment and natural beauty that sometimes gets taken for granted in South Florida; @mo_seas_, @flipflops365

So proud of two of my newer friends, Morgan Knowles and Cat Uden, for their selfless, enthusiastic and imaginative efforts to keep Broward residents' eyes on the #Environment and natural beauty that sometimes gets taken for granted in South Florida; @mo_seas_, @flipflops365





* Updated: January 31st, 2019

I'm so pleased and proud to see that as 2019 continues apace that two newer friends of mine are continuing to make such a big and positive difference in keeping Broward County residents' 
eyes clearly on the prize -the environment and natural beauty we all sometimes take for granted in South Florida, via their selfless, enthusiastic and imaginative efforts.


In fact, one of them, Catherine "Cat" Uden was on the front page -and above the fold- on the first edition of the year's South Florida Sun-Sentinel










And even appeared in Cahoots!




"Cat" is a very impressive and savvy woman and former school teacher, the latter being a fact that completely makes sense the more time you spend around her. She is a born teacher in the best sense of the phrase.

I first met her earlier in 2018 at a City of Hollywood City Commission meeting. There, sitting directly right behind her in the chamber, my friend, Hollywood civic activist and Friends of Hollywood president Patty Antrican introduced us and mentioned some things about each other to one another that made the three of us wonder how Cat and I had never met before.

Well, me being me, as the City Commission continued talking about an issue we were not closely following as we waited for Cat's topic of discussion to come up and get up in front of a microphone, we chatted non-stop, and in the months since I met her, she has continued to show her great leadership and dedication to the local community by standing up and being counted when it comes to some very important environmental and recreational efforts in #HollywoodFL, #Broward and #SoFL.


And it's no surprise at all that she's pals with my personal mermaid friend and fellow #SUP aficionado, Morgan Knowles, whose always-fascinating Instagram photos and videos of her on a Stand Up Paddleboard, especially while cleaning up local waterways or while interacting with marine animals or plants, are a definite MUST-FOLLOW!  










Making waves and taking names ๐Ÿ‘Š๐Ÿฝ๐ŸŒŠ • Check out how you can make a change below! Repost and ๐Ÿ“ธ from the incredible @olapicreative ๐ŸŒŠ๐Ÿ™Œ๐Ÿฝ๐Ÿ’™ • We caught up with #wavemaker @mo_seas_ in our last #conversationsbywater Facebook Livestream who had some great insight into how to beat the plastics race. .⠀ In our conversation, she brought up a great point, that we don't all need a degree in Marine Biology to do something to improve the health of our beaches and ocean. In her experience, Morgan points out that, "if you go and pick up something off the beach, somebody's going to see you. Either it’s going to spark some positive morality in them to want to do the same thing, they'll come and talk to you or pretend to ignore you (and feel guilty). And that's the best thing you can do, is invite people to come and talk to you and educate them even just a little bit. And that tiny little seed you just planted in their brain can become something that has a chance to change their lifestyle."⠀ .⠀ It's all about the ripple effect! www.facebook.com/olapicreative⠀ .⠀ #bethechange #oceanoptimism #waterwoman #waterwarrior #barnaclebabes #bluemind #moseas #olapiinspired #olapicreative #waterportraits #saveourseas #oceaninspired #oceanlifestyle #seachange #moseas #plasticsymptoms #rippleeffect #sustainablelifestyle

A post shared by Morgan Knowles, M.S., mawrgun (@mo_seas_) on

I'd first met Morgan in 2017 with her twin sister at a Florida state legislative update meeting in Hallandale Beach at the HB Cultural Center that was surprisingly crowded for a summer night with residents from both Hollywood and Hallandale Beach.


My plan that night had been to grill Florida State senator Gary Farmer and state Representatives Shevrin Jones and Joe Geller about some legislative matters that they probably hoped to ignore completely, or give short shrift, one of them being the sorry state of ethics locally, and Rep. Jones' vote against the state's Sunshine's Laws, which had been the object of a withering Sun-Sentinel editorial taking him to task, seemed like low-hanging fruit for someone like me used to having connect-the-dots for newbies.







https://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/editorials/fl-editorial-sunshine-law-20170503-story.html
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/florida-politics-blog/fl-reg-sunshine-report-card-20170620-story.html

Naturally, I'd also planned on video-recording the proceedings, good and bad, and posting excerpts here on the blog for everyone to see, and then post the whole thing to my YouTube page.


But Rep. Jones was a no-show at the meeting in Hallandale Beach, with Sen. Farmer claiming that he was sick. The truth emerged weeks later that Jones had actually been in West Park at the time, his home base, pressing the flesh and schmoozing, avoiding hard questions from me about his curious vote against transparency, which as regular readers of this blog know, is par for the course for him.


So instead of giving the umpteenth version of a speech I've given in Hallandale Beach many times over the preceding 15 years about local and state elected officials giving citizens short shrift on the ethics front, and deciding that they had special rules, with Jones a no-show, I spent the night videotaping the meeting and just listening. 

And then, just when I was thinking of bouncing and leaving early to get a late dinner, I instead became genuinely dazzled by Morgan's knowledge and boundless enthusiasm. 
She is pure energy and an absolute delight to be with! 

I can say that with some authority since we were among less than a handful of people left in the room, talking as everyone left and the room got ready to have its lights switched off by an employee standing at the light switch.

Yes, a familiar situation I have been in many times, as many of you veteran readers of the blog know quite well from personal experience.

And, like me, Morgan loves Iceland, and was actually there in 2017, with me being very envious!

Unless something very unexpected comes up, I plan on being in Iceland at some point in 2019, most likely on an Icelandair Stopover on the way back from a vist to Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo, to make-up for a great trip I was supposed to take a year ago at this time that was postponed.














Iceland. A place that warms you yet freezes you. Fills you with wonder and mystery. It's beauty is undestribable, but it's harsh exterior and treachery is physically palpable from a distance. ๐Ÿ”ฅ❄️๐ŸŒ‹๐Ÿ’ฆ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ’จ⛰๐Ÿ—บ • I have been so captured by this place I have indirectly relieved myself from the need to post.๐Ÿ˜ • Overcoming fears and boundaries replaced the want to aimlessly scroll.๐Ÿ‘Š๐Ÿฝ • My "dumbstruck awe" moments replaced my drive to check likes & followers.๐Ÿ™Œ๐Ÿฝ • My deminishing energy reserves after a long day of ice climbing or glacial kayaking distanced myself from the worlds chaos.๐Ÿ‘Œ๐Ÿฝ • It's been a real mind exploder FOR SURE.๐ŸŒ‹๐ŸŒŠ • More moments to come. Soaking it allllll in before I go nuts on the internet machine.✌๐Ÿฝ๐Ÿ˜ณ๐Ÿ“ธ • THANK YOU @beyondthemaptravel for making this trip the most epic adventure of a life time. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.๐Ÿ—บ • ๐Ÿ“ธ: @beakaykay #Moseas #beyondthemap #livelifebeyond #btmdoesICELAND #gluggafoss #nofiltersneedediniceland #iceland #icelandicwaterfalls #waterfalls #dontgochasingwaterfalls #btmtravel #iceland #chasingice #glaciers #hiking #exploring #iceclimbing #glacialkayaking #wander #wanderlust #adventure #epic

A post shared by Morgan Knowles, M.S., mawrgun (@mo_seas_) on


Here's a great video of Morgan last year with Paola Espitia of Ola'pi Creative in one of her firm's Wavemakers series of videos, talking about the marine debris epidemic.









We caught up with #wavemaker @mo_seas_ in our last #conversationsbywater Facebook Livestream who had some great insight into how to beat the plastics race. Catch the replay in the <LINK IN BIO>⠀ .⠀ In our conversation, she brought up a great point, that we don't all need a degree in Marine Biology to do something to improve the health of our beaches and ocean. In her experience, Morgan points out that, "if you go and pick up something off the beach, somebody's going to see you and either its going to spark some positive morality in them to want to do the same thing or they'll come and talk to you. And that's the best thing you can do, is invite people to come and talk to you and educate them even just a little bit. And that tiny little seed you just planted in their brain can become something that has a chance to change their lifestyle."⠀ .⠀ It's all about the ripple effect! Today's #conversationsbywater guest, Bryan Galvin of @plasticsymptoms is walking the talk to save Florida's beaches. Catch our Facebook LIVE 11/14 at 3pm EST/12 pm PST over at www.facebook.com/olapicreative⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ #bethechange #oceanoptimism #waterwoman #waterwarrior #barnaclebabes #bluemind #moseas #olapiinspired #olapicreative #waterportraits #saveourseas #oceaninspired #oceanlifestyle #plasticsymptoms #surfriderfoundation #rippleeffect #sustainablelifestyle
A post shared by PAOLA & PAY (@olapicreative) on


https://youtu.be/12BBKAZEi3A
More info about the video and the series: https://www.facebook.com/events/345501432688327/?active_tab=about


Morgan and Catherine's devotion and passion for driving social change has led them to engage in several initiatives focusing on sustainable environmental practices and development, positive societal behavior changes, and in general, empowering residents -especially students- to act as changemakers in their local communities.
Every time I see one of them, given the longstanding apathy that is ever-present in South Florida, including this part of broward County, I think, "Wow, we could only use about 1000 more people just like them."
They're both 'keepers'!

And, Morgan and Cat, like me, are always interested in discussing working/collaborative relationships and partnerships with other stakeholders/firms/groups to help push for more positive changes in the South Florida area on the many issues we care so deeply about, so keep that in mind if you are someone who is a problem-solver who can add something to the equation.

We all have an interest in seeing the creation of better and more innovative programs across multi-stakeholder groups to scale social innovation and create positive system change.













Saturdays are for good #supcleanup ๐Ÿค™๐Ÿฝ๐Ÿ’™ • @beakaykay and I paddled about 2 miles up into the New River from #BillKeithPreserve and boy was it a glorious day exploring. • Tide was on its way out, current was rippin, there was a nice breeze but holy mackerel Andy, there a lot of garbage and people NOT following the “no wake zones”. • They’re all smiling, waving and blowing by while we’re contorting ourselves trying to balance through tsunami wakes while picking up debris in a heavy current. Bro #slowtheFdown • You’re going to murder a manatee and I’m going to be so pissed... #nowakemeansnowake #endrant ๐Ÿคฌ • Anyway...what are you up to the rest of this beautiful Saturday? Hope your day is fabulous ๐ŸŒˆ๐ŸŒŠ๐Ÿ’™ • • • #optoutside #supcleanup #dickstixSUP #bluemind #saturdaze #standuppaddle #sup #take3forthesea #take4sea2shore #2minutebeachclean #moseas #moseascleanseas #cleanup #newriver #rivermonsters #plastic #foamfree #6packrings #plasticfree #styrofoam #plasticbottles #plasticbags #foamclamshells #corks #straws #paddle

A post shared by Morgan Knowles, M.S., mawrgun (@mo_seas_) on 

SEPTEMBER 25 2017 

Meet Catherine Uden, Surfrider Activist and Coastal Defender 
by Ty Smith
http://www.surfrider.org/coastal-blog/entry/meet-catherine-uden-surfrider-activist-and-coastal-defender

Some of you in the Hollywood and Hallandale Beach area may've first become aware of Cat when she was on the cover of the August 2018 issue of the Hollywood Gazette, at bottom,















What a cool way to begin 2019- front page! ๐Ÿ˜ƒ๐Ÿค™๐Ÿพ I’m sure many of you can relate to the connection you feel with the water, whether it be stand up paddling, surfing, scuba, free dive, or just being near the ocean. I hope that more people become connected with the water and feel the need to protect and enjoy the ocean. ๐ŸŒŠ I’m happy to begin 2019 fighting for the right to access our beautiful ocean, and I plan to work hard to protect it. Happy New Year! ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐Ÿ˜Ž #savetheoceansdamnit #protectandenjoy @sunsentinel @oceana @oceana_florida @surfrider @surfriderbroward #surfriderbroward #oceanaflorida #surfriderfoundation #hollywoodbeach #teamuden #liveauthentic #wahine #thefutureiswahine #happynewyear #protectwhatyoulove #sup #paddle #standuppaddle #sunsentinel #broward #southflorida #longlivethebeach #beachaccess #forceofnature #standuppaddlingisnotacrime
A post shared by flipflops365 (@flipflops365) on 
















Thank you @sunsentinel ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ๐ŸŒŠ I believe that @surfriderbroward chapter is very close to changing the harsh restrictions enforced on Hollywood Beach. Currently, 89% of the beach is inaccessible to surfers, kayakers, stand up paddlers, stand up surfers, etc. We are looking forward to more freedom! ๐Ÿค™๐Ÿพ Thanks to everyone who is part of our campaign.๐Ÿ˜Ž @surfrider @susannah_bryan @cityofhollywoodfl @bogasup @samatamag @standuppaddlemagazine @hollywoodgazette #hollywoodbeach #protectandenjoy #wahine #thefutureiswahine @virusintl @electric_women #hollywood #hollywoodfl #sunsentinel #broward #teamuden #southflorida #forceofnature #beachaccess #surfriderbroward #surfriderfoundation #standuppaddlingisnotacrime #bogasup #bogaboards #meetmeatthebeach #happyplace @surfrider #mygym #getupstandup
A post shared by flipflops365 (@flipflops365) on 



















I'm very happy to see that a very impressive woman I met earlier this year at a City of #HollywoodFL City Commission meeting, someone who's doing some very important #environmental work in #Broward and #SoFL, getting some much deserved attention: Catherine "Cat" Uden. She's on the cover of the new August issue of @hollywoodgazette Cat's fabulous #Instagram page, @flipflops365, includes some amazing photos and videos of her on her #Paddleboard, often with her friends, interacting with the inviting blue and green water and amazing variety of nature that's here that draws so many people to this part of #Florida, and why so many people I know here are #SUP people. This attention befits someone who is such an important voice for positive change in #SouthFlorida, at both @oceana and @surfriderbroward. Cat is currently serving as the Chair of #Broward's Surfrider chapter.

A post shared by Hallandale Beach Blog (@hbbtruth) on
https://www.hollywoodgazette.com/2018/07/27/hollywood-is-at-the-forefront-of-ocean-conservation-and-cat-uden-is-on-her-paddleboard-leading-the-way/










Very happy to be the reason why ocean conservation issues are getting so much attention in the current edition of the Hollywood Gazette. Thanks so much to Robin Drulard and Hollywood Gazette for giving me a cover story! ๐Ÿค™๐Ÿพ๐Ÿ˜Š Sometimes people will ask me why I spend so much time volunteering for ocean conservation causes, and as an ocean and beach lover, I think “Why WOULDN’T I?” And don’t we all need the ocean? ๐Ÿฆˆ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿ ๐ŸŸ๐Ÿ™๐Ÿ‹๐Ÿ‘™@hollywoodgazette @oceana @surfrider @surfriderbroward #ocean #oceanconservation #moreoceanlessplastic #defendourcoasts #drillingiskilling #protectwhatyoulove #cleanwaterhealthybeaches #protectandenjoy #longlivethebeach #theoceanismyfavorite #ilovetheocean #surfrider #surfriderfoundation #oceana #oceanaflorida #florida #floridaoceana #hollywood @floridashollywood #broward #southflorida #lovefl #blocktheblast #teamuden #oceanfriendlyrestaurants #cleanyourbeach #oceanminded #beoceanminded @oceana_bze @oceana_canada @oceana_chile @oceana_socal @electric @electric_women #opticsofohm @bronwenjewelry @marchfortheocean @the_meec

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SEPTEMBER 25 2017 

Meet Catherine Uden, Surfrider Activist and Coastal Defender 
by Ty Smith

http://www.surfrider.org/coastal-blog/entry/meet-catherine-uden-surfrider-activist-and-coastal-defender



Cat's fabulous #Instagram page, @flipflops365, includes some amazing photos and videos of her on her #Paddleboard, often with her friends, interacting with the inviting blue and green water and amazing variety of nature that's here that draws so many people to this part of #Florida, and why so many people I know here are #SUP people. This attention befits someone who is such an important voice for positive change in #SouthFlorida, at both @oceana and @surfriderbroward. 

Cat is currently serving as the Chair of #Broward's Surfrider chapter.

--------

Here are the Social Media links that Morgan and Cat are VERY ACTIVE on to let everyone know just what they are up to and what's what from their Point of View.
You ought to start FOLLOWING them and get involved with their activities before that band wagon gets too crowded!

Morgan especially loves doing live streaming of events, so if you can't get to something that she'll be at, check and see if she'll be streaming it.

I could do about 1,001 podcasts with Morgan without ever breaking a sweat and never run out of things to listen to her talk about. THAT is how fascinating she is! 

Morgan Knowles

Just a little about her from her YeaFrog -Youth Environmental Alliancebio page:


Passionate about the oceans and finding ways to conserve, protect, clean and educate about their vital role in survival of this planet, Morgan has dedicated her life to understand the complex yet captivating questions of the sea from a very young age. Her professional career began with a B.S. in Marine Sciences at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania with field work in Wallops Island Marine Consortium, followed by a M.S. in Marine Biology concentrating on coral reef ecology, restoration and marine debris. Her research interests include but are surely not limited to: coral reef ecology, tropical reef fish, restoration, marine debris and environmental education & outreach. Her love for the sea has allowed for over 350+ logged dives (~200 being scientific) and had the extraordinary opportunity to work in many marine related biological projects here in South Florida including: Reef Fish Visual Census Research Assistant, Outreach & Media Coordinator, Sea Turtle Specialist, Marine Benthic Dive Technician, Coral Restoration Assistant, Marine Science Educator and her own research on marine debris .Her most recent volunteer work (2 years) in submerged and shoreline marine debris removal efforts on Southeast Florida coral reefs and beaches. As well as using social media for outreach and education on the importance of our seas, and all organisms within it. She also has a knack for teaching as she has been a Snowboard Instructor, American Red Cross Emergency Response Instructor, lifeguard in Training Instructor, Camp Educator, and Marine Biology Educator. With this wide variety of skills in her tool box, she is willing to accept any challenge thrown her way on fin at a time.

Twitter: M.S. Marine Biologist. Educator Mermaid. Surfer. Diver. Dog lover. Musician. Twin. Creative Being
@mo_seas_, https://twitter.com/mo_seas_
Instagram: Morgan Knowles, M.S., mawrgun https://www.instagram.com/mo_seas_/
Marine biologist๐Ÿ”ฌ๐Ÿ ๐Ÿงœ๐Ÿผ‍♀️Ocean Warrior ⚔️๐Ÿฆ€๐ŸŒŽDiver๐Ÿ™๐ŸฆˆDog Whisperer๐Ÿ•๐Ÿ‘ฏ PlanetLoveLife ♻️ SurfriderBroward ๐ŸŒŠ BarnacleBabe๐Ÿก YEA๐Ÿธ
www.facebook.com/events/345501432688327/?active_tab=about

Catherine "Cat" Uden

Twitter: @UdenCatherine, https://twitter.com/UdenCatherine
Instagramflipflops365 https://www.instagram.com/flipflops365/
Cat- BOGA Ambassador, SUP Gladiator Race Fins Team, Mom, Surfrider Broward, Oceana, dreaming of O’ahu, views are my own, #teamuden
South Florida Campaign Organizer for Oceana, Twitter @oceana https://twitter.com/oceana

More about Cat's activities with Oceana here:

https://oceana.org/about-oceana/people-partners/oceana-staff/catherine-uden
Catherine believes strongly in a quote by David Suzuki, "unless we are willing to encourage our children to reconnect with and appreciate the natural world, we can't expect them to help protect and care for it.

See also, yet another embarassing story about something in Hallandale Beach:
















Dave

Hallandale Beach Bloghttp://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 
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