Join Miami Waterkeeper for a panel discussion with community leaders to talk about the issues facing our waterways and solutions to make South Florida a more resilient community. Providing a unique forum to highlight ongoing threats to our watershed, the annual State of the Water convenes leaders in finding solutions to the complex problems it faces.
Featured Guests
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| Rachel Silverstein, Ph.D. Miami Waterkeeper Event Host & Panel Moderator |
Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins Miami-Dade County Panelist |
Professor Amy Clement University of Miami Rosenstiel School Panelist |
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| Walter Rodriguez Meyer Local Office Landscape & Urban Design Panelist |
Elizabeth Fata Carpenter Everglades Law Center Panelist |
Noah Valenstein Biscayne Bay Commission Speaker |
2023 Porter Prize Awardee
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava
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Daniella Levine Cava was elected Miami-Dade County’s first-ever woman Mayor in November 2020. She enters the Mayor’s office following a 40-year career as a relentless advocate for South Florida families in public service and elected leadership. |
As Miami-Dade County’s Mayor, she oversees a metropolitan government with nearly 30,000 employees serving nearly 3 million residents, managing an annual budget of approximately $10 billion.
Mayor Levine Cava’s administration is focused on building a stronger, more inclusive, more resilient Miami-Dade: prioritizing reforms to make our county safer; restoring and reinvigorating a thriving economy; saving Biscayne Bay and building and protecting our environment; and directly engaging with residents to make local government more responsive, transparent, and accountable. Learn more about the Mayor’s key priorities and progress.
A social worker, lawyer, and community activist, she was first elected in 2014, and re-elected in August 2018, to serve as the Miami-Dade County Commissioner representing District 8. As Commissioner, she invested in Miami-Dade small businesses and expanded economic opportunity, protected the environment and our water, increased the County police force for underserved areas, advocated for an expanded, reliable public transportation system, worked to create affordable housing and revitalize neighborhoods, and helped make local government more accountable and transparent.
In 1996, Mayor Levine Cava founded Catalyst Miami to help low- and middle-income families through service, education, and advocacy. Catalyst helps approximately 5,000 people each year to become more self-sufficient and civically engaged.
She is the Immediate Past Chair of the South Florida Regional Planning Council (SFRPC) and served as an SFRPC Council Member from 2015 – 2020. She has served on the Florida Bar Committee on Legal Needs of Children; the boards of League of Women Voters, Orange Bowl Foundation, North Dade Medical Foundation, South Florida Health Information Initiative, and several national boards. She’s won numerous awards from various organizations including: the Commission on Ethics, Red Cross, American Society for Public Administration, ACLU, National Council of Jewish Women, League of Women Voters, among others.
About the Porter Prize
The Miami Waterkeeper Porter Prize is named in honor of Miami Waterkeeper’s longtime attorney, Jim Porter. With a deep and abiding love for Biscayne Bay, Porter dedicated thousands of hours of service to Miami Waterkeeper’s mission to protect our environment. In 2021, Porter lost a long battle with cancer. The Miami Waterkeeper Porter Prize is now awarded annually to a member of the community who, like Jim, has gone above and beyond in service of the environment.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Miami Waterkeeper recently launched the PartnerSHIP program to recognize and engage our most dedicated supporters. Members of the PartnerSHIP crew receive sponsorship recognition for State of the Water, along with recognition as a key supporter of clean water throughout the year.
The PartnerSHIP enables us to monitor and share information about water quality on a weekly basis, conduct novel scientific research, investigate policy proposals and compliance, litigate against polluters, and educate the community through targeted outreach, education, and volunteer engagement. Members of the PartnerSHIP crew also enable the Miami Waterkeeper team to respond to crises and quickly pivot to incorporate emerging science into our work.
Past Events
Click the image below to view photos from past State of the Water events.
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2022 State of the Water |
2021 State of the Water (Click to watch the virtual event.) |
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| 2020 State of the Water |
2019 State of the Water |