The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper

Vol. 15 No. 29 - May 13, 2015

reel time

Sarasota Bay Watch enters Gulf Coast Challenge

Reel time

rusty chinnis | sun

Best known for its attempt to restore scallops to Sarasota Bay,
Sarasota Bay Watch is diversifying its efforts.

 

Sarasota Bay Watch (SBW) is entering a unique competition sponsored by the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, known as The Gulf Coast Innovation Challenge. At stake is a $500,000 grant that was created to stimulate and fund innovative solutions to issues and opportunities affecting the Gulf Coast region. The Challenge highlights marine science in an attempt to advance causes that impact what the challenge refers to as the region’s “Blue Economy.”

The Challenge has four distinct phases with deadlines that include submissions, Feb. 24 to April 30; feedback, May 1 to June 30; refinement, July 31 to Oct. 30; and presentations, evaluation and selection, which begins on Nov. 2. Submissions are made through an online form located on the Gulf Coast Innovation Challenge Website. During the submission phase, each entity chose a team leader who was required to create an account, register the names of all team members, identify the challenge and give a brief description of the team’s hypothetical solution. All submissions were reviewed by a panel of experts before entrants were allowed to join the grant challenge.

SBW’s first entry, which was submitted in partnership with the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, involves creating what is referred to as the “Emerald Necklace.” The proposal, which has been accepted, was spearheaded by SBW board member Pepper Deitz with assistance from board member Larry Stults. The entry was submitted with the following language:

“New and interesting ecotourism destinations are needed. Neglected waterway islands are inaccessible, inhospitable and overrun with damaging invasive plants. Sarasota Bay Watch and partners propose to: Create an Emerald Necklace of accessible waterway islands throughout the area to meet the growing ecotourism needs. Creating island landing zones for paddle craft and tourism boats increases ecotourism’s scope and diversity, while habitat restoration enhances the eco-experience.

Converting community waterway islands from inhospitable invasive plant “seed banks” to welcoming visitation areas creates new ecotourism destinations accessible only by water. This process will help to increase the number of marine outfitters, charters and businesses and promote local green tourism.”

Talking points of the proposal were that eco-tourism is booming in Sarasota and along the Gulf Coast. Currently there are limited eco-destinations and a real need to develop new ones exists. Throughout the Gulf Coast region there are neglected waterway islands that are inaccessible to eco-tourists and overrun with invasive plants and trash. These waterway islands are jewels in the rough that should be restored to create new and interesting eco-destinations.

Sarasota could be a model for other communities to create new destinations and extend the Emerald Necklace up and down the Gulf Coast. Restoring our waterway islands to native habitat will benefit the environment as well as creating welcoming eco-destinations. The media contact for the Conservation Foundation is President Christine Johnson, Christine@conservationfoundation.com.

Sarasota Bay Watch’s second proposal, also accepted, was developed in partnership with Selby Gardens, the Science and Environment Council of Southwest Florida and Todd Barber, of the Reef Ball Foundation. This proposal involves creating what has been referred to as living seawalls.

At present 80 percent of Sarasota Bay’s shoreline is hardened with seawalls, many of the seawalls need repair and or to be replaced over the next several years. This proposal recommends hosting a design charette to develop living seawalls that are environmentally sound, readily permit-able and economically feasible.

SBW believes Selby Gardens would provide a unique demonstration site and good experimental laboratory for living seawall solutions because of its high energy bayfront shoreline, low energy bayou shoreline and dock structures.

The positive impact of the this solution would be to create a green seawall business model that vastly improves marine diversity and density, and is scalable beyond Sarasota/Manatee to all of Florida and globally. Benefits would include boosting the base of the food chain, which in turn supports fisheries and related commerce, as well as top of the food chain species such as dolphins; increasing eco-tourism generally and turning Selby Gardens into an eco-tourism destination.

SBW and its partners will now have to create a short video describing the proposals. During this feedback phase, videos will be displayed with each team’s submission in a public Challenger’s Gallery on the Challenge’s Website where the community can comment, ask questions, or provide feedback on submissions.

As many as five of the proposals will receive grants of $25,000 each to create a prototype of their proposals. The winners will then be tasked with pitching their proposals to a panel of experts, who will evaluate them and provide recommendations to the board of directors of Gulf Coast Community Foundation. One Team will then be selected to receive a grant of up to $375,000 to bring its solution to market.

The Challenge was created to encourage and fund innovative ideas that will transform the Gulf Coast region. Research has shown that “incentive grant challenges by philanthropies can be effective mechanisms to encourage innovation and achieve social benefits.”

The Gulf Coast Community Foundation intends to tap into the competitive, entrepreneurial spirit of individuals, businesses, and organizations in the region to spur innovations that can grow the economy and provide a community service and/or benefit.

Sarasota Bay Watch is excited to be a part of the challenge as it fits with the mission to help create and sustain a healthy bay. For more information, visit the Gulf Coast Challenge Website at www.gulfcoastchallenge.org


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