Nature Coast Biological Station is excited to announce that applications for our 2026 Internship Program are now open!

https://ncbs.ifas.ufl.edu/internship-program/

This highly competitive program is entering its 6th year and continues to support bright UF undergraduates as they pursue their goals in research, management, and outreach in the Nature Coast region. The NCBS Internship Program offers summer internships with both UF coastal researchers and state and federal agencies, including USGS, FWC, Florida’s Aquatic Preserves, and Water Management Districts. Many successful interns have continued on to graduate school with their hosts and have earned full time positions in their host agencies.  

Follow the attached link and click on View Open Opportunities for more information, including the 11 possible internship opportunities (“2026 Undergraduate Internships”). Applications are due on January 25th.  

Feel free to reach out to me (mhensel@ufl.edu) and Emily Colson (emilycolson@ufl.edu) with any questions. 

 

Congratulations to all the high school teams that participated in the 2025 Southeast Regional Envirothon Competition  on February 19, 2025 at CB Smith Park in Broward County. 

Click below to learn more about the event and the team highlights.

2025 SER Envirothon News Release (1).pdf

Attention Graduate & Undergrads - 

Check out this Scholarship & Internship opportunity for the Stuart/Treasure Coast Region with the Friends of the Everglades. Deadline - March 2025

Download for more details - 2025 Karen Mashburn Environmental Scholars.pdf

Questions? Contact Amanda Purnell -amanda.purnell@everglades.org

• Become an Everglades Educator & Mentor
• Learn Teaching Techniques & Everglades Ecology through Hands-on Field Experiences
• Design Environmental Education Resources
• Connect Campers to their Watershed through Live Virtual & In-person Field Trip Programs

Application Deadline: March 31st, 2025

For more information, email GrassyWaters@wpb.org

Download the flyer here

The Orlando Wetlands Festival will be on: Saturday, February 22, 2025, from 9 am—3 pm at the Orlando Wetlands, 25155 Wheeler Road, Christmas, FL 32709. Phone: 407-568-1706. orlando.gov/wetlands.

Since 2001, the Orlando Wetlands Festival has promoted community awareness of the Orlando Wetlands and the importance of Florida’s ecological and water resources. This year’s theme is “Water is Life”.

The Festival will include:

• Environmental themed exhibitors providing engaging educational content
• Demonstration trucks and equipment
• Air-conditioned guided bus tours of the Orlando Wetlands
• Guided birding hikes led by Orange Audubon Society
• Guided photography, Native Plant ID, and Aquatic Critter Crawl Hikes
• Live animals and animal presentations
• Free native plant give-away
• Bird-banding and mist-netting demonstrations
• Kids games and activities
• “Hay” rides
• Live music by Homer Stiles
• Food trucks
• Free door prizes!

 Admission is free and all ages are welcome, but please leave your pets at home—there are wild animals at the Orlando Wetlands. For more information, registration and event reminders, please visit: Webpage: orlando.gov/wetlandsfestival, search for us on Eventbrite or Email: wetlandsfestival@orlando.gov. 

Thank you to our generous sponsors: AECOM, Kiewit Corporation, US Submergent Technologies, Wharton-Smith Inc. Construction Group, Tetra-Tech Consulting and Engineering, VHB Engineering, Carollo Engineers, Wright-Pierce Environmental Engineering, Orange Audubon Society, City of Orlando. 

 Directions: Drive 40 minutes east of downtown Orlando on State Road 50 to Christmas, Florida. Go north (left) 2.3 miles on Ft. Christmas Road (County Road 420) and 1.5 miles east (right) on Wheeler Road.

24_OWF_Flyer_Letter.pdf

Environment Florida Research & Policy Center and their Student PIRG's are hosting their first ever Youth Ocean Summit in St. Petersburg Florida on March 1st. The summit is FREE to attend for college and upper high school students interested in learning about careers in ocean protection and conservation. It will be one day of sessions, panels and workshops about the latest threats, research and communication efforts for Florida's waterways. Please check out our speakers on the website linked above.

Do you love environmental education?  Want to work outdoors with kids in the Florida Everglades? Consider joining our team at Grassy Waters Preserve!

To apply, visit the City of West Palm Beach jobs list (Job # 25-098-009160): https://www.wpb.org/Departments/Human-Resources/Job-Opportunities

We are excited to share that the first-ever public meeting of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions Advisory Council (HBCU-MSI AC) has been scheduled for Wednesday, November 20^th.  Given the historic nature of this public meeting, we want to make sure that it is as accessible as possible, thus members of the public will have the opportunity to attend in-person, in Washington D.C. and virtually on Wednesday, November 20^th from 10:00AM – 4:30PM EST. 

Please register to attend in person and virtually here. In-person seating is limited and not guaranteed so be sure to register as early as possible! Please note, each individual will need to register separately. 

Additional instructions for how to attend the meeting, virtually or in-person, will be shared closer to the meeting date. 

In addition to attendance, the HBCU-MSI AC is interested in receiving written or in- person comments. The public comment period will take place on Wednesday, November 20^th. Comments can be submitted:  

• Verbally– In-person and virtually on Wednesday, November 20^th at approx. 2:00PM EST. Those who wish to present their comments in person MUST register by Wednesday, November 13^th. 
• In writing by entering comments in the Docket EPA-HQ-OA-2024-0525 at www.regulations.gov or sending comments via email to HBCU-MSI.AC@epa.gov.  

Please share this invitation with anyone in your network who may be interested - we welcome everyone of all ages to join us in person and virtually!

We look forward to your participation in the upcoming HBCU-MSI meeting.  

Thank you.

Rhonda Wright

Office of Public Engagement and Environmental Education

Office of the Administrator

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

The Mississippi Environmental Education Alliance (MEEA), in partnership with the Southeastern Environmental Education Alliance (SEEA), will be hosting their first regional conference, May 6-8, 2025! We invite you to participate in their “Call for Proposals,” which is open now.  You may submit your proposal via their website at https://www.meeainms.org/conference or follow this link,  Call for Proposals.  Deadline for proposals is Nov. 22, 2024.

Please forward the information to others in your network.  Thank you for considering being part of this exciting event! 

Do you enjoy working with students of all ages? Are you looking for a job that allows you to be outdoors and share knowledge about the environment around you? Are you a self-motivated, hard- working individual with a positive attitude? Do you want to work in the field of environmental education? Then St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge is looking for you to be a part of our education team, to assist with environmental education, outreach, interpretation, special event planning and much more. Click here to learn more about the 2025 Spring Environmental Education Internship at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge.