Sunset over the Indian River Lagoon on Nov. 12, 2020, in Martin County.
Sunset over the Indian River Lagoon on June 30, 2019, in Martin County.
Sunset over Savannas Preserve State Park on Earth Day, April 22, 2019, in Martin County.
Sunset over the Buttonwood Sound on July 29, 2018, in Key Largo.
A zebra longwing butterfly on June 1, 2022, in Stuart.
Rain clouds roll over the Miami Canal on June 2, 2022, in Lake Harbor.
Kayaking with Friends of the Everglades Executive Director Eve Samples through Maggy’s mangroves on May 23, 2020, in Martin County.
A roseate spoonbill soars over Stuart on April 8, 2020.
A young eastern screech owl is perched on a branch on Aril 28, 2019, in Martin County.
A flock of birds fly over Lake Okeechobee on June 1, 2022, in Okeechobee.
This month, we welcomed Leah Voss to the Friends of the Everglades team. In the newly created position of Multimedia Producer, Leah will help us bring Everglades issues to life through imagery and videography. Her background as a talented photojournalist and her passion for Florida’s unique environment are palpable in the work she produces, and we’re certain the stories she tells with images will bring a new strength to our mission to preserve, protect and restore the only Everglades in the world. Please join us in welcoming Leah to the team! We invite you to learn a little more about Leah, via her words and images
Last week, I felt small but mighty under the big Glades sky. I was interviewing residents of Belle Glade, Pahokee and Lake Harbor about the impact sugarcane burning has on their lives. It’s clearly a problem that needs to be fixed, and there are clear solutions. As Friends of the Everglades’ new Multimedia Producer, I’m thrilled to be able to use my skill set as a visual storyteller to push for results and positive change to Florida’s delicate environment.
In my previous career as a photojournalist, I was able to travel most of the Sunshine State. Each story I covered taught me something new and gave me hope for the future. I’ve searched for Burmese pythons in the Everglades with federal biologists working to eradicate the invasive species. I’ve met an oyster farmer in Pensacola who was sick of the blame game and decided to help clean water himself. I’ve interviewed a second-generation owner of an outdoors outfitter along the Estero River who can think of no place in the world he’d rather be.
There is reason to be hopeful. There are people making changes big and small to protect, preserve and restore the unique ecosystems we live among. You and I are among them. I want this feeling to be your moment of zen this month.
I plan to bring you plenty more of these moments with wildlife and landscape photography. Be sure to follow Friends of the Everglades on Instagram, where I will also post videos from Florida’s most beautiful places and interesting people. Feel free to reach out to me at leah.voss@everglades.org with any Everglades stories that need to be told or prime nature spots I should visit with my camera. And don’t forget to keep the faith.
