Audubon Florida's grassroots were out in force on Monday, June 17 in St. Petersburg to make their voices heard for conservation at the last public listening session of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. The Gulf Council had scheduled hearings across the Gulf region to allow citizens the opportunity to comment on their draft plan for restoring the Gulf Coast ecosystem and economy.

At the St. Petersburg hearing on Monday, six Audubon voices were heard and spoke passionately about the upcoming restoration and funding process - notably Dave Kandz of St. Petersburg Audubon Society and John Hood, president of Clearwater Audubon Society.

Audubon's Gulf Restoration priorities were well represented and our message that restoring our environment restores our economy was well heard! Click here to see our latest priorities document. In all, three Audubon chapters, two Audubon state offices, and an Audubon Citizen Science program were represented at the hearing - an inspiring and diverse turnout!

Audubon would like to thank everyone who participated in this important hearing and include a special thank you to the Gulf Council for making opportunities to comment in Florida ample.

Please stay tuned to this blog or to the RESTORE Florida's Gulf eNewsletter for the latest information and next steps on how you can participate in this important restoration process.