In this episode, Brett takes the show on the road to moderate a discussion at the OneWater Summit in Winter Haven. His conversation partners included Lynn Spivey, the City of Plant City Utilities Director; David MacIntyre, the President of AquaSciTech Consulting; and Frank Bernardino, Partner Ameritus with Anfield Consulting.

They discuss the definition of One Water; how the regulatory structure of water in Florida may be exacerbating its resource issues; what’s missing in how environmental issues are being communicated to policy makers and the public; what the real cost of water and environmental restoration is; and even some talk about how to pay for it all.

Special thanks and recognition goes out to Gary Hubbard and Amy Jenkins with the City of Winter Haven for organizing the summit and to Eric Draper for allowing Brett to hijack his panel for the show.

To visit the OneWater Summit website and see the agenda and panels, go here.

This episode is brought to you by our friends at Resource Environmental Solutions (RES)

RES is the nation’s leader in ecological restoration, helping to restore Florida’s natural resources with water quality and stormwater solutions that offer communities guaranteed performance and outcomes. Check them out at www.res.us

This episode is also brought to you by our friends at Sea and Shoreline.

Sea and Shoreline is the Southeast’s leading innovator in protecting coastal communities from devastating storms and restoring ecosystems that once faced ecological collapse. Visit their website at www.Seaandshoreline.com.

Please be sure to check out the Florida Specifier Podcast hosted by Ryan Matthews and Brett as part of the environmental news and discussion brought to you by the Florida Specifier. To learn more about our flagship print publication, weekly newsletter and more, visit The Florida Specifier.

You can follow the show on LinkedIn and Instagram @flwaterpod, and you can reach us directly at FLwaterpod@gmail.com with your comments and suggestions for who Brett should be talking with in the future.

Production of this podcast is by Lonely Fox Studios. Thanks to Karl Sorne for making the best of what he had to work with. And to David Barfield for the amazing graphics and technical assistance.

In this special episode, released under the Water for Fighting as well as the Florida Specifier banner, Brett gets to sit down with Bartow’s favorite son, Adam Putnam. At the time he served, Putnam was the youngest person ever to be elected to the Florida House of Representatives at barely twenty-two years old. He would go on to serve as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for five terms, becoming the 3rd ranking member of that body, and he was elected statewide as Florida’s 11th Commissioner of Agriculture where he served two terms. He is now the CEO of Ducks Unlimited but still splits time between Tennessee and Florida.

They discuss his deep roots in Imperial Polk County; growing up in the family’s citrus and cattle business; his long-term, successful participation in the 4H Club and Future Farmers of America (FFA) and the leadership tools he developed there; how he drifted into politics at such a young age; how he brought the character and challenges of his community to Tallahassee and Washington, D.C. as he pursued fresh perspectives on old problems; his appreciation for the expansion of the Rural and Family Lands program; his frustration with the federal government’s opaque and overbearing nature as it relates to Waters of the U.S.; and what it’s like to have one of the coolest jobs you can imagine.

This episode has plenty to capture the attention: a story about how his grandparents kept truck tires inside with them because they were so vital to their livelihood; some incredible stats on what Ducks Unlimited is accomplishing; a University of Florida shoutout (if you’re into that sort of thing); flashbacks to the citrus freezes from the 80s that captured hearts of area communities; a solid Alexis de Tocqueville reference; a simultaneously optimistic and realistic view on the future of citrus in Florida; and how he has no plans on getting back into politics again (see above re: coolest job ever).

To visit the Ducks Unlimited website, go here.

To learn more about Florida’s Rural and Family Lands Protection Program, go here.

This episode is brought to you by my friends at Resource Environmental Solutions (RES)

RES is the nation’s leader in ecological restoration, helping to restore Florida’s natural resources with water quality and stormwater solutions that offer communities guaranteed performance and outcomes. Check them out at www.res.us

This episode is also brought to you by my friends at Sea and Shoreline.

Sea and Shoreline is the Southeast’s leading innovator in protecting coastal communities from devastating storms and restoring ecosystems that once faced ecological collapse. Visit their website at www.Seaandshoreline.com.

Please be sure to check out the Florida Specifier Podcast hosted by Ryan Matthews and Brett as part of the environmental news and discussion brought to you by the Florida Specifier. To learn more about our flagship print publication, weekly newsletter and more, visit The Florida Specifier.

You can follow the show on LinkedIn and Instagram @flwaterpod, and you can reach me directly at FLwaterpod@gmail.com with your comments and suggestions for who I should be talking with.

Production of this podcast is by Lonely Fox Studios. Thanks to Karl Sorne for making the best of what he had to work with. And to David Barfield for the amazing graphics and technical assistance.

And finally, a very special thank you goes out to Bo Spring from the Bo Spring Band for giving permission to use his music for this podcast. The song is called Doing Work for Free, and you should check out the band live, or wherever great music is sold.

In this episode, Brett sat down with his friend and fellow Southwest Florida Water Management District alum, Eric Sutton. Before his current role, Eric has spent his entire career in public service. He’s worked for Sarasota County; the water management district where he and Brett met; and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, where he would eventually get to serve as the organization’s Executive Director. He’s currently a Vice-President with Garcia Land Management and Environmental Services.

They discuss his family’s deep roots in rural Western Kentucky; a childhood spent outdoors; how he changed paths at the University of South Florida and wound up working in the natural sciences; his desire to learn, improve, and take on new challenges; his management philosophy as his responsibilities grew; the love he had for his staff, board, and organization – and when he knew it was time to move on; his new role with Garcia and the challenges of working in the private sector; and a flirtation with the “RV Life”.

They also share a glass of whiskey from the Green River Distillery, an historic institution in Owensboro, Kentucky, near walking distance from his childhood hometown of Henderson. Did we mention that Eric is a long-time musician and jingle writer, and a one-time professional elephant washer (we mean, zoologist) at Busch Gardens as well? Well, he is.

Special Note: To our fellow Floridians (and even to our listeners and readers in Georgia and North Carolina) who are recovering from the impacts of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, our hearts are with you, and we won’t forget you in the hard months to come. The Florida Specifier/Water for Fighting team is pulling for you and hoping for a safe and speedy recovery for your families and communities. If you’d like to share your story with us, we’d love to hear from you. Just reach out to Brett at flwaterpod@gmail.com or Patrick Gillespie at PatrickGillespie@floridaspecifier.com.

To visit the Garcia Land Management and Environmental Services website, go here.

To check out the Green River distillery, go here.

This episode is brought to you by our friends at Resource Environmental Solutions (RES)

RES is the nation’s leader in ecological restoration, helping to restore Florida’s natural resources with water quality and stormwater solutions that offer communities guaranteed performance and outcomes. Check them out at www.res.us

This episode is also brought to you by our friends at Sea and Shoreline.

Sea and Shoreline is the Southeast’s leading innovator in protecting coastal communities from devastating storms and restoring ecosystems that once faced ecological collapse. Visit their website at www.Seaandshoreline.com.

Water for Fighting is part of the Specifier media family – Florida’s home for environmental news, discussion, and personalities. Please be sure to check out the Florida Specifier Podcast hosted by Ryan Matthews and Brett as part of the environmental news and discussion brought to you by the Florida Specifier. To learn more about our flagship print publication, weekly newsletter and more, visit The Florida Specifier.

You can follow the show on LinkedIn and Instagram @flwaterpod, and you can reach us directly at FLwaterpod@gmail.com with your comments and suggestions for who Brett should be talking with next.

Production of this podcast is by Lonely Fox Studios. Thanks to Karl Sorne for making the best of what he had to work with. And to David Barfield for the amazing graphics and technical assistance.

And finally, a very special thank you goes out to Bo Spring from the Bo Spring Band for giving permission to use his music for this podcast. The song is called Doing Work for Free, and you should check out the band live, or wherever great music is sold.