Planted in Miami

Think about this for a moment: a child born today can expect oceans to rise one to four feet in their lifetimes; Miami is projected to experience over a foot of sea level rise by the year 2050 and anywhere from 10 to 30 feet by the end of the century.  Add to this that not a single viable solution has been proposed that would keep Miami above water at current sea level rise projections, then the fact that Miami will likely one day ...

Jeanne Albaugh has spent her life in service to the homeless, but when she fell and broke her back while inside a fast food restaurant, she not only lost her life long dream of becoming a world champion in barrel racing, she became homeless herself.

Once she realized her dream would never materialize, she fell into a deep depression and got addicted to pain killers.  Her husband eventually divorced her and she lost her three childr...

"Radical simply means grasping things at the root." - Angela Davis

Meet Ana Samantha, part of the Miami Core-Team of the Dream Defenders.  Founded in 2012 after the murder of Trayvon Martin by a few university students across Florida tired of the systematic over policing and incarceration of poor communities of color, The Dream Defenders was started in order to make powerful change come t...

Owning a home was once the American dream, but for quite some time now it's been out of reach for many Americans.  The housing crisis further deepened that chasm and here in Miami where wages are lower than other big cities, the issue of affordable housing is all too real and leading Miami towards a homeless boom.

So what's considered affordable?  Paying less than 30% of your income towards your rent or mortgage.  We know, you're...

Traditionally, decisions about the future of communities are made behind closed doors by a select few in positions of political power, but with more and more local organizations getting involved and demanding a seat at the table, the times are a changing.  Sarah Emmons, and her team at Radical Partners work tirelessly to educate and connect change-makers to accelerate the big ideas that will lead Miami forward and to tackle the iss...

Considering it's been predicted that there'll be more plastic in our oceans than fish by 2050, wouldn't it be nice if there was a store that offered solutions to our dependence on plastic and that could help us reduce our waste?  Well, now there is.

Verde, located in Wynwood, is Miami's first and only sustainable store. Now, instead of buying another plastic container when you run out of a product, you can take that same container ...

When Nzingah Oniwosan was just 12 years old, she was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor on her pituitary gland called Prolcatinoma. Unbeknownst to her, this was just the beginning of a series of illnesses that would eventually lead her to see five different physicians on a regular basis over the course of nine years. After being sick and tired of being sick and tired, Nzingah decided to make radical changes in her diet and lifestyle...

5.25 trillion pieces of plastic reside in our oceans compared to the 400 billion stars in the Milky Way. That means we have 13 times more pieces of plastic in our oceans than stars in our galaxy. This startling fact is the first thing you see when you visit the Debris Free Oceans webpage, a not-for-profit organization established by locals, Caiti and Jeremy Waks. Their long-time love of the water and th...

There are a lot changes occurring in Little Haiti and Abraham Metellus of the Little Haiti Cultural Complex is helping to bridge the gap between community and culture by showcasing programs and events that highlight the Haitian and Afro-Carribean culture. The state of the art facility houses a 300 seat theatre, 2,150 square foot art gallery, outdoor courtyard and a Caribbean Marketplace with local vendors, music, miniature golf, ve...

Cristina Ivory, the founder of Angry Booch, isn't afraid to experiment, which is why upon finding out about the health benefits of kombucha, she decided she was going to make some for herself. If you've never heard of kombucha, you're not alone.  However, the popularity of this effervescent and fermented drink made from tea is on the rise and Angry Booch is serving up some unique, Miami inspired flavors.

After perfecting her recipe...

Did you know that scattered throughout the vast landscape of the Everglades, far from the city lights of Miami, vehicles from another time, another era, are quietly resting amongst the mangroves and marshes?  By using satellite imagery and investigating rumors, photographer Matt Stock and the brainchild of Abandoned Vehicles of the Everglades, Charles Kropke, go out into the darkness to e...

Each day, people in the United States throw enough trash away to fill 63,000 garbage trucks.  A good portion of that trash is food, which could eventually be composted into rich soil used to grow more food. If you're not familiar with composting or if it's been something you've been thinking about but haven't acted on, let us introduce you to Fertile Earth and it's Executive Director, Melissa Selem.  Fertile Earth is a non-profit w...

On September 1, 1944, the Miami Police Department hired "The First Five" black police officers (then called patrolmen) in order to bring some level of equality to policing in the black communities.  Considering the overt racism and discrimination of our country at that time, this was a historic moment and these men paved the road for those that would come after them.  By 1950, there was 41 black officers on the force and a police p...

What do you do when you get your dream job in fashion, have amazing friends, live in one of the most popular cities in America but somehow feel like something is off in your life? This is where Colleen Coughlin found herself a few years back trying to discover what it was about her job that wasn't fulfilling her.  The revelation came during a trash day at work when tons of scraps, samples and more were being thrown away and/or burn...

Nine years ago, Barry Rabkin discovered a golfball sized lump on his throat while washing his face. The diagnosis was thyroid cancer and the treatment was invasive surgery and radiation. Upon the suggestion of his wife, he began juicing in an effort to help aid his recovery. Not only did Barry feel better and have more energy, but his blood work was showing signs of improvement with levels in the normal range.  It was at this point...

At a very young age, Nicole Mejia learned the importance of health and hard work.  After expressing her grievances to her father of being an overweight kid, he motivated her to start running the very next morning.  Together they bonded through overcoming obstacles and life lessons.  Today, Nicole is the founder of Fit and Thick, a women's empowerment brand that teaches the importance of being healthy, embracing your natural physiqu...

Years ago when P. Scott Cunningham was trying to avoid making eye contact on a New York City subway, he came across Poetry in Motion, an initiative where poems would be featured on the trains instead of advertisements. The poem was called, Hunger, by Billy Collins and it painted a vivid picture of a fox being taken home in a satchel for dinner.  Not having been particularly interested in poetry back then, the poem stood with him ye...

Growing up on the lively streets of Harlem, New York, Rachelle Salnave found an appreciation for her culture and the arts.  Her inspirations from family members to African American films she saw with powerful role models gave her the desire to create her own works of film; a historical feature documentary on the gentrification of Harlem and the Emmy nominated film about her Haitian identity, La Belle Vie: The Good Life.

Wanting to...

When Australian transplant, Rohan Templeman fell in love and moved across the pond to Miami, he brought his love of farmer's markets and the art of making tempeh with him.  In 2017, after partnering with his father-in-law Dan Jonas, BeCultured Tempeh was born.  Originating in Indonesia, tempeh is a protein source traditionally made from soy.  Describing their methods as part art, part science, this duo has created irresistibly deli...