Gulf Coast Life

A conversation with investigative reporter and founder of the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting Jerry Mitchell about how his work led to convictions of KKK members in the 1963 Birmingham Church Bombing, the 1963 assassination of Medgar Evers, the 1966 fatal firebombing of NAACP leader Vernon Dahmer, and the killings of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner during the Freedom Summer of 1964. Mitchell comes to FGCU for free lecture that’s open to the public on Wednesday, Feb. 16.

When author, art therapist, and environmental educator Holly Merker learned she had cancer she turned to her lifelong passion for birdwatching as a sort of therapy. Preview the lecture she’s giving at “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society called, “Ornitherapy: How a Deeper Experience with Nature Can Enrich Your Mind, Body, and Soul.”

Nearly 38,000 children in Florida were detained for involuntary psychiatric exams in 2018-2019. A new report from Florida Weekly states that's an increase of more than 150% in 18 years. Advocates hope two proposals in front of the state legislature will provide better protections.

Learn how reporting to the CDC's Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System — or VAERS — works, what happens when serious adverse events are reported, and the rates at which serious adverse events are happening following COVID vaccinations.

The proposed “Safe Waterways Act” by Calusa Waterkeeper would require the Florida Department of Health (FDOH) to issue health advisories and post and maintain warning notices at “public bathing places” where the water has been found to contain fecal bacteria.

The Southwest Florida Music and Education Center in Naples will soon be offering neurodivergent young adults a truly unique, comprehensive music education program to help them pursue careers in the music industry.

We are living in an increasingly polarized world — particularly when it comes to political views. And while this might be something we all believe we feel, there is data that backs up what we’re feeling.We explore just how polarized we are in the United States, what might be causing it, and possible ways to address it and become less polarized with Dr. Myiah Hutchens, Associate Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of Public Relations at University of Florida.

Annabelle Tometich, food writer and critic, outlines 14 restaurants in Southwest Florida that, she says, are doing things right under the most trying circumstances.

Project SEARCH is a program that helps students with intellectual and developmental disabilities transition from school to work. Hear from two women who make Project SEARCH possible, an a current Project SEARCH intern, and a former intern.

New technology being tested by researchers at UF/IFAS to help Florida farmers reduce their costs as much as possible in order to try and stay profitable in the face of what’s called ‘citrus greening.'