Gulf Coast Live: Art Therapy and Mental Health / New Leadership for South Florida Water Management District

The use of Art Therapy in the treatment of mental health issues stretches back nearly a century, yet this is still considered an emerging field in mental health treatment.  As May marks Mental Health Awareness month, we’ll explore art therapy’s myriad uses in everything from managing symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease to providing an expressive outlet for children on the Autism Spectrum and even helping victims overcome trauma.  We’ll talk with experts from the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida and Delta Family Counseling in Cape Coral ahead of their Art Therapy Workshop later this month at the Lee County Alliance for the Arts..

The South Florida Water Management District, which overseas water resources stretching from Orlando to the Florida Keys, has increased its representation from Southwest Florida.  District leaders say the SFWMD fared well in the recently concluded state Legislative Session with $70 million allocated for Everglades restoration.  From shovel ready restoration projects in Southwest Florida to preparing for the upcoming Atlantic storm season, we’ll take a closer look at challenges and opportunities facing the SFWMD with its new Chief of Staff Dan Delisi, new Governing Board member Mitch Hutchcraft and Intergovernmental Representative Philip Flood.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Florida’s 2013 Legislative Session / Funding for Southwest Florida Healthcare Systems

Hospitals across Florida are looking for ways to save money following a 2 percent cut in Medicare funding which took effect April 1as a result of the federal sequester.  The Florida Hospital Association says Florida hospitals will lose about $2 billion in funding over the next 10 years as a result.  Southwest Florida’s high rate of seniors could mean the impact will be deeper for healthcare providers here.   Plus, in the state legislative session that ended Friday, lawmakers failed to expand Medicaid using federal dollars through the Affordable Care Act.  We’ll hear from officials with Lee Memorial Health System and Naples Community Hospital Healthcare System for a closer look at how they’re coping and what’s next.

State lawmakers closed the 2013 legislative session with a $74.5 billion budget that increases funds for education and job growth efforts.  Election and foreclosure reforms were among the more notable measures that passed.  State House leaders also blocked a proposed expansion of Medicare to one million additional Floridians.  Join our panel of political science experts for a closer look at the 2013 session as we explore what passed, what didn’t and what it means going forward.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: The Sin Warriors / Chemo Brain

We’ll explore a chapter in Florida history from the 1950s and 60s when the actions of a state legislative investigation, better known as the Johns Committee, resulted in the expulsion of some 300 teachers and students suspected of being homosexual. The Committee’s 30,000 pages of collected documents were to be sealed for 72 years once the group disbanded, but in the early 1990s, the state Legislature released the documents as public record. We’ll take a look at the historical context of the Johns Committee and its impact through Jacksonville author Julian Farris’s debut novel, The Sin Warriors.

While chemotherapy can be part of life-saving medical treatment for patients with cancer, it can create lingering side effects on one’s ability to think; such as trouble finding the right word to speak, or even difficulty with visuospatial skills and finding your way around. We’ll explore what Moffitt Cancer Center researchers found about the effects of “chemo brain” in a study of breast cancer survivors published in theJournal of Clinical Oncology.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: The Hijab Challenge / Guatemala, Civil War, Genocide, and the trial of Rios Montt

The Hijab Challenge encourages women to spend some time wearing the traditional headscarf of Muslim women.  We’ll speak with two Florida Gulf Coast University students who recently took up the challenge for several days to learn more about the experience of Islamic culture and to observe the reactions of strangers, friends and even themselves.  Find out what they experienced and what they’ve taken from the challenge.

Thirty-one years ago, Jose Efrain Rios Montt rose to power amid a civil war in Guatemala.  Although he remained in power for less than two years, his military regime was responsible for the deaths or disappearances of tens of thousands of indigenous Mayan Indians.  Facing charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, we’ll take a look at the latest from the Rios Montt trial and a look back at what really happened in our conversation with two anthropology professors who’ve worked to document the stories of survivors and exhume the graves of victims.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Local History of Earth Day / Climate Change and Sea Level Rise

Among U.S. states, Florida is at the greatest risk of damage from sea level rise.  Climate Central scientists project that more than 2 million Floridians will be living below sea level by the turn of the next century  without serious intervention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  Florida Gulf Coast University Marine Science and Climatology experts Dr. Michael Savarese and Dr. Joanne Muller join us for a look at what their research reveals about climate change and sea level rise in Florida.

And, with Earth Day coming up April 22, we’ll take a look back at the history and evolution of this global event supporting and promoting environmental protection.  We’ll talk with longtime Lee County educator Bill Hammond who helped create one of the nation’s first environment education programs more than 40 years ago.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Ina May Gaskin / Guns, School Safety and Policy

In 1965 C-sections were performed in less than five percent of baby deliveries in the United States.  Today, nearly one in three babies is delivered in the U.S. via Cesarean. We’ll explore one woman’s view on what’s behind the increase.  Ina May Gaskin is an author, lecturer and founding director of the Farm Midwifery Center.  She speaks at the first annual Green Family Expo at the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers April 20, following a screening of the documentary film, Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin & The Farm Midwives April 19.

In the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in Newtown Connecticut, the national debate rages on about gun regulations and efforts to keep students safe at school.  Will more stringent gun laws make schools safer?  What about arming administrators and teachers?  We’ll talk with Venice resident and Executive Director of the School Safety Advocacy Council Curtis Lavarello who speaks at the National School Boards Association Conference this week in San Diego.  We’ll explore the efficacy of new laws being proposed at the state and national level and the future of school safety policy.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Impact of Sequestration on Southwest Florida Airports / LGBT Issues and the Florida Legislature

State Rep. Joe Saunders (D-Orlando) made history last fall by becoming one of the first openly gay candidates elected to the Florida Legislature.  With the 2013 state legislative session at its halfway point, we’ll talk with the gay-rights advocate turned lawmaker about legislative priorities for Florida’s LGBT community and why he says greater protections against workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity are good for Florida’s economy.

The across-the-board federal spending cuts known as sequestration went into effect last month.  While many Americans may not have felt the impact, that could soon change in Southwest Florida.  The Federal Aviation Administration plans to end air traffic control programs beginning later this month at 149 smaller airports around the country including the Punta Gorda Airport, Page Field Airport in Fort Myers and theNaples Municipal Airport.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Holocaust Survivors Honored at “Triumph 2013—Lives of Valor” / Republican State Representative Ray Rodrigues

In honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, April 7-8, the Holocaust Museum & Education Center of Southwest Florida hosts “Triumph 2013 – Lives of Valor” on April 7.  The event honors three Holocaust Survivors:  Museum co-founders Ann Jacobsonand Lorie Mayer along with author and Major General Sidney Shachnow.  We’ll talk with each of them about their stories of survival and their continued efforts to ensure that the atrocities suffered and the lessons learned from the Holocaust are never forgotten.

With Florida’s legislative session now in full swing, our series getting to know Southwest Florida’s freshman lawmakers continues with a conversation with Republican State Rep. Ray Rodrigues of Estero.  In November, he won the election to represent State House District 76 which includes coastal Lee County.  Learn more about Rep. Rodrigues’ background and legislative priorities for the current session.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Ira Glass/ Status of Southwest Florida Tourism Industry

 

 

Ira Glass, the host and creator of the iconic public radio program This American Life comes to Fort Myers April 14 delivering his unique brand of storytelling in a one man show at the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall.

We’ll explore Glass’ life and career now producing a show distributed by more than 500 public broadcasting stations and reaching about 1.8 million listeners each week.

Governor Rick Scott recently announced 2012 was another record breaking year for Florida’s tourism industry with tourists having a $71.8 billion impact on the state’s economy. Despite high gas prices and the red tide bloom intermittently plaguing area beaches, the outlook for the current busy tourist season is also looking up. We’ll talk to tourism directors from throughout Southwest Florida for a look at the health and significance of the industry and strategies for attracting visitors to the region.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page

Gulf Coast Live: Babies Born Addicted to Prescription Drugs / Republican State Representative Dane Eagle

According to local experts, the number of babies in Southwest Florida born addicted to prescription opiates has shot up 800% in the last eight years and they say the mothers don’t fit the typical profile of a drug addict.

Nationally, the number of babies born addicted has tripled in the last decade. We’ll explore what’s behind the trend, how Florida officials are responding and how Lee Memorial health System has become a national model for dealing with the problem.

As state lawmakers prepare to convene this year’s legislative session on March 5th, we talk with freshman Republican State Representative Dane Eagle.  In November, he won the election to represent State House District 77 which includes Cape Coral.  

Learn more about Rep. Eagle’s background, political ideology, and legislative priorities going into the 2013 state legislative session.

The show will be live at 9AM on 90.1 FM

Call in: 1-877-428-8255
Email: gulfcoastlive@wgcu.org
Click here to go to the show’s page