The Museum of Discovery and Science has# been a really key part of Fort Lauderdale since we opened in 1977 as the Discovery# Center.

In our vision here at the museum, we really see science as being, and an# understanding of science, truly being part of making the community a better place.

We# connect people to inspiring science and we do that each and every day through early childhood# education, physical science, health and wellness, and environmental sustainability.

I've been# at the museum seven and a half years and it was actually a question that came up in my# interview and the search committee were asking, you know, what would you do around environmental# sustainability?

Which was a great question because one of my questions is why isn't the museum# doing more around environmental sustainability?

We've got a board, we've got a staff who# are really passionate and focused on it, but it's really building on all of the great# work that's already happening in South Florida.

Climate change presents a number of challenges# for the Broward community.

We are a coastal community.

We're flat, we're low lying.

One of the# principle and early concerns was coastal flooding associated with sea level rise.

We have complex# water management systems and they all need to be rethought when we think about rising sea level# and rising groundwater table.

But we also have an increase in extreme rainfall events that# challenge our water management systems in ways that we maybe wouldn't predict for another, you# know, 50, 70 years.

And we're seeing that happen now.

And more recently, I think we're all talking# more about extreme heat and what that means for our communities, for our workers, for vulnerable# populations, and in Broward County, we're working to address those things.

We've had conversations# with the Museum of Discovery and Science for, I wanna thank almost a decade.

There's just# really no other entity that's so well positioned to serve as that centerpiece, that source for the# community.

They're recognized to cater to families and school children and serve as an educational# center that supports generations of learning.

Being in South Florida, being at, you know, one of# the many forefronts of climate change that we have around the world right now, we're seeing sea level# rise, we're seeing the impacts of king tides, we're seeing the increasing heat in the summer.# This is something we need to address.

We went all in on this in partnership with the Community# Foundation of Broward to create our hub for resilience education.

Really creating a place# where we can bring together thought leaders, we can bring together nonprofit and corporate# partners to really be part of the solution.

Right now on the floor we have opportunities# where we're asking visitors, children, and families to come up using Lego bricks# to solutions to building a better sea wall, to creating a habitat for sea turtles, to# protecting the Everglades.

You hear this amazing dialogue about habitat protection, about# fragmentation of land.

They may not be using those words, but they're getting the point and they're# realizing that they could be part of the solution.

It's about inspiring young people and their# ability to be communicators as well for a broader community because it isn't adequate# to have one-off conversations.

We all need to feel like we have agency and we have the# ability to communicate with confidence about why this in issue is important, why it can't# be delayed, and why we need organized action.

Our Eco Explorers Internship is a paid internship# program for high school aged individuals between 10th and 12th grades in local Broward County# schools surrounding the nearby area of the museum where we're looking for individuals# who are wanting to dip their toes a little bit more into environmental# studies, environmental sustainability, maybe even a little bit of urban planning.

It# gives them an opportunity to not only work on their workforce development skills, their soft# skills that a lot of employers are looking for nowadays in the growing climate.

It takes# them into opportunities where they get to immerse themselves into the natural landscape.# We go out to the Everglades quite frequently, but then they also get to hear from some# professionals throughout a whole bunch of different areas that might touch environmental# studies in ways that we don't think so.

In our excursions, we do a lot of stuff like# planting mangrove trees.

We've done that twice and we tested the waters to, like, see the salinity# and check the nitrogen levels.

We also done fun things like kayaking and like, just walking around# and exploring the Everglades and we went air boating, a lot of fun stuff.

Before I started# this internship, I was very afraid of climate change.

Whenever people, like, talked about it or# I learned about it, a lot of people talked about the catastrophes and the damage it's causing and# will cause in the future and how it's only gonna get worse.

But my experience in this internship# has actually taught me about the ways that people are actually making stuff better and how I can,# like, I can do my small part to help and I can try to encourage our officials to do things to# help.

So it gives me a sense of power and control to be able to see that I have power to change and# help my future and the future of everybody else.

When you think about the hope for# the future, it's those Eco Explorers who are just so passionate.

We have them# out on the museum floor, we train them, and then they're interpreting to the public.# We worked with the Environmental Defense Fund to create a new initiative that the interns# came up with.

They speak to the visitors, they're working with kids, but they're testing# out, you know, how can we adapt cities to make them more resilient?

What happens in a flood?# What happens with, you know, energy shortages?

I think the museum does a really good job at,# like, introducing us to all these topics.

When we see them in real life, we're not really# surprised.

They allowed me to be the keynote speaker at the Broward County Youth Climate Summit# last year, which was a whole bunch of high schools came to it.

And me and one of our other interns# spoke about climate change and the flooding and everything.

And then this year, I was able to# be the host for the event again.

We can't take action unless we know what we're talking about.# All these other students who've been coming to these things who are in the internship, they# actually learn what's gonna happen in the future and they get to make these little changes# that will make a really big difference later on.

I see that there is this growing call amongst# a lot of these younger individuals to want to be here, to want to be involved.

The# questions they ask when they're here, when they're learning about this new material,# the different perspectives they bring from all of their different backgrounds that we pull from, it# shows that there is a want, a desire, and a need for them to want to be involved.

And I'm glad# that the museum is actually being able to allow that outlet for them to get experience in this# field to hopefully become future change makers.

We are investing heavily in preparing# our community and I think, you know, that starts with things like critical thinking# skills.

You know, that starts with things like confidence, cooperation, caring.

You know,# as we develop our programs, whether it's, you know, new IMAX documentary curricula that# we're developing, new STEM mobile outreach, this is truly ingrained with who we are.

And# when we speak to young people in schools, these kids are passionate.

They are ready,# they wanna make a difference.

They recognize, you know, the communities they live# in that may not have the tree cover.

They see that.

And I think for us, being# part of the solution is the way forward.