unspOILed - Writers Speak for Florida's Coast

	We Floridians love our coasts. We love our fishing. We love to swim and surf and eat seafood and build sand castles. Florida’s beaches are pure white stretches of bliss that feed our souls, a natural gift as important as the Rocky Mountains or the Grand Canyon. Now, as we face the Gulf of Mexico's worst ever environmental disaster, the British Petroleum oil spill off Louisiana, we must ask: How could it possibly be worth it to risk the health of Florida’s number-one economic engine – its coasts – at the hands of the careless and unaccountable oil industry? In this volume, 38 writers, scientists and students share their abiding love of Florida’s Gulf of Mexico coast and its sea life. Unspoiled reminds us that now is the time to shift from the oil dependent, industrial economy that is devastating our planet and driving climate change. It is time to transform our culture into a way of living in balance with the greater web of all beings, a culture based on truly sustainable lifestyles and clean, renewable energy sources.
Edited by: Susan Cerulean, Janisse Ray, and A. James Wohlpart Illustrations by: David Moynahan CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Doug Alderson Marty Ambrose Bill Belleville Erin Canter Susan Cerulean Felicia Coleman Jan DeBlieu Connie May Fowler Thomas Hallock William F. Hammond Lola Haskins Julie Hauserman Grace C. Jackson Jeff Klinkenberg Christopher Koenig Ellie Alexandra Levy Megan M. Melvin Myra Mendible Jono Miller O. Victor Miller Jesse Millner Julie Morris Riki Ott Oannes Arthur Pritzker Dawn Evans Radford Mandie Rainwater Janisse Ray Diane Roberts Jack Rudloe Michael Savarese Matt Smith Linda Taylor Crystal Wakoa Jessica Wheeler A. James Wohlpart Kathryn Keene Wohlpart Sasha Linsin Wohlpart Edward C. Woodward
	“A lively assemblage of strong arguments for the environmental preservation of Florida’s wonderful wild coasts.” – Peter Matthiessen, National Book Award-winning American novelist “A lyrical volume to remind Floridians that our coastline is not just our greatest natural asset. It's our greatest asset, period. Unspoiled also evokes another state treasure: our writers. Florida's literary luminescence shines from these pages.” – Cynthia Barnett, Senior Writer at Florida Trend magazine, and author of Mirage: Florida and the Vanishing Water of the Eastern U.S. "The potential benefits to Florida of offshore drilling are modest; the risks incalculable. Thirty eight writers have drawn a line in the sand and joined a growing chorus of voices across the state in support of the best of what Florida represents, now and in the future.” – John Moran, nature photographer and author of Journal of Light: The Visual Diary of a Florida Nature Photographer Publication of this book was made possible in part by a subvention from the Center for Environmental and Sustainability Education at Florida Gulf Coast University. The Center works toward realizing the dream of a sustainable and peaceful future for Earth through scholarship, education, and action. ADDITIONAL INVESTORS Connie Bersok · Bill and Rene Burnett · Kathryn Wohlpart Chou · Margaret and Tom Clark · The Cooper Brown Family · Florida Wildlife Federation · Roberta Isleib and John Brady · Linda Jamison · Mary Beth McBride and Tom Anderson · Ann and Don Morrow · Ellen Shapiro · Elise and Steve Smith · Shaw Stiller and Heidi E. Recksiek · Trudy Thompson · Martha Weinstein · Kimberly and Paul Wheeler · Meg Whitmer · Jack and Ellen Winchester · Al and Pam Wohlpart
Red Hills Writers Project 1509 Hasosaw Nene Tallahassee, Florida 32301 (850) 216-2016 info@RedHillsWritersProject.org www.RedHillsWritersProject.org