Pepper Uchino

In this episode, Brett sits down with his good friend and Anfield alumnus, Pepper Uchino. Pepper is now the President of the Florida Shore and Beach Preservation Association, but he has a wealth of experience from his days as the staff attorney, and then Staff Director, of the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee.

Pepper is unique in that he’s the direct descendant of Japanese Samurai as well as Mayflower passengers who landed at Plymouth Rock. They discuss his early life in New England as the son of an environmental activist; the health struggles that nearly derailed his future early on; the successful and growing Resiliency Conference he hosts; and they commiserate on the life of legislative committee staff and how laws are made from the perspective of someone on the “inside”. Did we mention his childhood home was haunted? More about that as well.

To find out more about FSBA’s 37th Annual Conference on Beach Preservation Technology National Conference coming up in February, head here: https://www.fsbpa.com/tech-conference.html

And save the date for the 3rd Annual Florida Resilience Conference coming in September. To learn more and get registered, go here: https://floridaresilienceconference.org

To keep up with Pepper’s old Senate Committee and their deliberations, visit the Senate’s website here: https://www.flsenate.gov/Committees/Show/EN/

Pepper talked about his work with the Trust for Public Land before he joined the Senate. To find out more about what they do, go here: https://www.tpl.org/state/florida

When you’re in Connecticut, why not visit some of New Haven’s most haunted sites? Perhaps Pepper’s childhood home is on the list somewhere. To learn more about that, go here: https://blog.gardencommunitiesct.com/blog/most-haunted-places-new-haven-county-ct/

This episode of Water for Fighting is 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.

This Episode is also thanks to my friends at Resource Environmental Solutions.

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

Please be sure to check out the Florida Specifier Podcast hosted by Ryan Matthews and myself as part of a new venture where we’re striving to become Florida’s first source for environmental news, educational tools, and unique perspectives on our state’s natural environment and the events that shape it. To learn more about its flagship print publication and more, visit The Florida Specifier.

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Production of this podcast is by Lonely Fox Studios. Thanks to Karl Sorne for making the best of wha