Pictured: Jon Thaxton discusses the Community Playbook for Healthy Waterways. Photo courtesy of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.

This week, Jon Thaxton, Gulf Coast Community Foundation’s Senior Vice President for Community Leadership, and Dr. Jennifer Shafer, Co-Executive Director of the Science and Environment Council of Southwest Florida, presented a poster abstract on The Community Playbook for Healthy Waterways at Restore America’s Estuaries 2022 Coastal & Estuarine Summit in New Orleans. The Playbook is a comprehensive collection of actionable recommendations to achieve and sustain community-wide nutrient management for water quality in our ponds, creeks, bays, and estuaries. This nutrient management strategy was developed for a Florida Gulf Coast community through a facilitated brainstorm of experts and practitioners, followed by research and stakeholder interviews to determine feasibility. The Playbook can be adapted and customized by communities across Florida for use by municipal, county and state governments and agencies, non-profit environmental organizations, philanthropic foundations, businesses, homeowner associations and other leaders. Since the Playbook launched, the community has made progress in coordinating and implementing specific recommended activities. To learn more about Gulf Coast Community Foundation’s Water Quality Playbook, visit www.waterqualityplaybook.org.

Pictured: Jon Thaxton discusses the Community Playbook for Healthy Waterways. Photo courtesy of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.