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    "It's hard to care about what you don't know about."

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Residents for Resilience (R4R) was born from a personal experience, but it

quickly became about something much bigger. It became a journey to better

understand how South Florida's most important water challenges—from safe

drinking water and water quality to flooding, stormwater management, coastal resilience,

and marine ecosystem restoration—are interconnected, and how connecting people, science, information, and solutions can help build healthier waterways, stronger communities,

and a more resilient future.​

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Like many South Florida residents, I found myself asking questions that

seemed like they should have simple answers—but weren't.

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💧 Is my drinking water safe?

                     🌊 Is it safe to swim, paddleboard, or fish?

             🌧️ Why does my neighborhood flood?

   💦 Why is the water so murky?

                                              🐚 How can we better protect our waterways and marine ecosystems?

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Those questions became deeply personal after I contracted a serious

MRSA infection following a paddleboarding outing several weeks after

more than 200 million gallons of wastewater had spilled into Fort Lauderdale's

waterways. While no one could say with certainty where the infection originated, my doctors believed contaminated water exposure was the likely cause.

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That experience changed my life.

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With a background in broadcast journalism, I assumed finding reliable information

would be straightforward. Instead, I discovered a significant information gap.

The information residents needed wasn't always easy to find, easy to understand,

or available when they needed it most—especially when it came to issues

affecting public health, water quality, flooding, and environmental safety.

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As I began researching these issues, I realized my story wasn't unique. Residents

throughout our community were asking many of the same questions about

drinking water, water quality, flooding, stormwater management, coastal

resilience, and the health of our waterways and marine ecosystems.  The deeper

I looked, the more I realized these weren't separate issues.

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Everything is connected.

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The choices we make, the infrastructure we build, and the way we manage

water all influence one another. What happens on land affects our rivers, canals,

estuaries, and coastal waters. Those waterways influence our drinking water,

marine ecosystems, public health, economy, and ultimately the resilience

of our communities.  That realization became the foundation for Residents for Resilience.

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Since it's hard to care about what you don't know about, R4R was created to help close the information gap by connecting residents with trusted experts, scientific research, universities, educators, environmental organizations, businesses, and government leaders.

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Together, we're translating complex environmental and water-related information

into practical, easy-to-understand knowledge while fostering collaboration that transforms innovative ideas into real-world, science-based solutions.

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Our Four Focus Areas

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               💧 Safe, Clean Drinking Water

☔️ Flood Mitigation

              ⛈️ Stormwater Management

                                                     🌊 Protecting & Restoring Our Waterways and Marine Ecosystems

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While each of these issues is important on its own, none exists in isolation.

By connecting people, science, information, and innovative ideas, we can

better understand environmental challenges, identify their root causes,

and work together to develop practical, science-informed, and

nature-based solutions.  Because informed and connected communities -

build a stronger and more resilient South Florida! ​​

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Because informed and connected communities - 

build a stronger and more resilient South Florida! 

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