Dancing in the Sky, Jo-Ann Sanborn
acrylic on canvas, 12x16
As an artist the Everglades landscape continues to interest me. I've come to know much of it, especially the areas closest to Marco Island, the Ten Thousand Islands, the Fakahatchee, and the Big Cypress. The light on the prairies, the marching palms and the dancing clouds have become dear to me.
I worry about the threats to Everglades survival, and wonder if we're doing enough to save it. It's a unique wetland, and the only one of its kind in the world. In the last century, natural resources were exploited for their usefulness to humans. As we mature as a species, we are beginning to recognize that there are limits to our resources, and that for our own health and survival we must preserve and protect our worlds natural systems.
As we begin to undo a hundred years of damage from forced controls of water flows, the world watches to see just how far we will go and how much we will spend to protect and preserve both our environment and our economy, and is looking to see how we resolve the balance of needs.
There's been an ongoing legislative dance between stakeholders, public perception, and funds available for restoration. It's a dance for control, regulation, funding, and needs. The line between restricting regulation and restoration regulation is still being defined.
Florida is once again at a crossroads. Please make sure that your legislators know where you stand.
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