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Red-nosed reindeer cookiesWe start by hearing from Dalia Colon, the producer of our Zest podcast. She takes us into her home as her family prepares, bakes and delivers their traditional reindeer cookies.Fishing With DadFlorida Matters host Robin Sussingham shares her day fishing with her father. His smoked mullet is a favorite among their friends and family.Remembering "Tia Pepy"As soon as we started talking in the newsroom about traditions and holidays, the first thing our Morning Edition host, Jessica Meszaros, thought of was her Aunt "Tia Pepy's" rice pudding.Jessica says she thought of her aunt "immediately because ever since I was growing up, she would come around on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, and she would have a Tupperware for us and she does that for everyone."A Pagan CelebrationWUSF multimedia reporter Daylina Miller celebrates a pagan yule log tradition. Daylina teaches us about the pagan tradition, which celebrates the winter solstice and why some have moved from buring the yule log to baking

Host Robin Sussingham has a one-on-one conversation with Rex Jensen, president and CEO of Schroeder -Manatee Ranch.Jensen discusses the patience, planning and strategy it took to develop and finance the top-ranked multi-generational community in the nation, according to one study."If you want look at the success in Lakewood Ranch, that lies in how it has been financed.  We have weathered a lot of economic storms over the 2 1/2 decades" Jensen said.  

We speak with historian Rodney Kite-Powell of the Tampa Bay History Center who explains that the first Thanksgiving feast took place here in Florida not in Plymouth Massachusetts.Dan Bavaro the owner of Bavaro's Pizza talks with Dalia Colon, our Zest producer and tells us how he and his family went from New Jersey to Florida and started his Neapolitan-style business of pizza.Emmanuel Roux a long time restaurateur, developed a once vacant lot into an urban oasis. The St. Petersburg Ecovillage is now a community garden with a mission to reconnect people with nature. Emmanuel talks with Dalia Colon about how he uses food to educate the public about nutrition.We also spoke with Ed Chiles, the owner of the Sandbar on Anna Maria Island, about local sustainable food sourcing.Owner Andrew Tambuzzo of the Tambuzzo Sausage Company in Tampa starts a new chapter in what has been a very old tradition in Ybor City. Andrew tells us about the butchery and the changes in business and neighborhood.Lastly, we talked with the cr

Guests include:Gabrielle Russon, Tourism Reporter with the Orlando Sentinel.Amanda Norcross, Senior editor of Trip Advisors' Family site FamilyVacationCritic.comWith Disney experiencing its own struggles with long lines and rising ticket prices.  They discuss how the theme parks are trying to help minimize the long lines by adjusting ticket prices to the demand of the park goer.Gabrielle Russon tells us about the programs Disney has implemented to increase workers satisfaction including pay increases, being one of the only theme parks in Florida to unionize its workers,  as well as tuition payments to staff membersAmanda Norcross teaches us how to get the most of our money by planning theme park vacations around the ages of your children.

This program originally aired August 6, 2019.How can this hot, humid, fungus-friendly state support successful wine production? And how does the reputation of Florida wines stand up to wines grown elsewhere like California or New York?We talk about whether Florida’s wine industry is economically viable on this week’s Florida Matters.

In a conversation with the ACPL director, former Congressman Dennis Ross and with former State Senator Rick Dantzler, former Senator Bill Nelson spoke candidly about his political and civic life,  and the changes he’s seen in his long life in public service. 

This week on Florida Matters we discuss the concerns of more than 28 hundred cases of hepatitis A being diagnosed in Florida so far this year, it has become one of the worst outbreaks of the liver disease in the country. We talk about how some counties in Florida have managed to keep their numbers from growing.  We also learn why vaccinations and even something as simple as washing your hands are key to prevention. Our guests include: Julio Ochoa, editor of Health News Florida at WUSF. Jill Roberts, assistant professor at USF College of Public health. Florida Matters airs on WUSF 89.7 Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 7:30 a.m.  It's also on Classical WSMR 89.1 and 103.9 on Mondays at 10 p.m.

Mass transit in Tampa Bay's densely populated big cities grabs the headlines. But there's a case to be made that transportation has even more of an impact on people living in rural areas.This week on Florida Matters, Ron Pianta, planning and zoning director for Hernando County -- along with Dave Hutchinson, MPO executive director of Manatee and Sarasota -- joins Tom Phillips, executive director of the Citrus Connection in Polk County, to talk about the issues and solutions in our rural areas.Florida Matters airs on WUSF 89.7 Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 7:30 a.m.  It's also on Classical WSMR 89.1 and 103.9 on Mondays at 10 p.m. 

With the population in the Tampa Bay area growing so has the traffic. Transportation leaders have proposed many ideas about how to help people get around faster in the region, but residents are waiting on results. This week on Florida Matters we discuss urban transportation issues including funding problems, pedestrian safety and proposed Bus Rapid Transit systems.   Our guests this week: David Gwynn, District Seven Secretary of Transportation Graham Brink, a business reporter at the Tampa Bay Times. Robert Bertini, Executive Director  Center for Urban Transportation Research

Projects are underway in Tampa and Orlando to reduce traffic congestion at airports, security screenings are becoming more high-tech, and Tampa even has a new policy that lets people hang out in airside terminals without a boarding pass.Our guests are Al Illustrato, Executive Vice President at Tampa International Airport, and Bill Brooks, Southeast Aviation Leader at HNTB Corporation, an infrastructure design firm that's involved with construction of a new terminal at Orlando International Airport.

Florida is one of the top states in the country in honey production, with some of the finest quality honey you can find. It's also an important wintering ground for commercial beekeepers up north, with their "snow bees." In a special reporting collaboration between WUSF News and The Zest Podcast, we're taking a closer look at honey bees over the next several weeks. You can find photos and videos at WUSF.org/honeybees. This week on Florida Matters, host Robin Sussingham speaks to Dr. Jamie Ellis, Professor of Entomology and director of honey bee research  at the University of Florida. Dr. Ellis and his team conduct research projects in the fields of honey bee husbandry, conservation and ecology, and integrated crop pollination. He also created UF's Master Beekeeper Program.

Over the next few weeks, WUSF will be sharing stories produced for One Small Step, the latest project from StoryCorps. Each segment features two strangers, with differing political beliefs, sitting down together and having a conversation. The idea is to take "one small step" toward getting people to emphasize with one another and to bring down the cultural temperature. This week on Florida Matters we give you a behind-the-scenes look at how the project came together.

Florida's coral reefs are in trouble. Scientists say they've been declining for decades. But researchers have very recently come up with some exciting results that they say show promise in restoring these beautiful and important marine communities. On this week's show, host Robin Sussingham speaks with Erinn Muller, Science Director of the Mote Marine Laboratory's Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research and Restoration; Keri O’Neil, senior coral scientist at the Florida Aquarium; and Roger Germann, CEO of the Florida Aquarium.

Historians and local old-timers say that once, Tampa Bay was overflowing with delicious oysters. And that some rivers, like the Manatee River, were once so full of mullet that they roiled the water and their noise would keep nearby residents awake at night. We're talking about seafood this week on Florida Matters.

Leaky pipes, broken water mains, sewage spills. Tampa Bay's storm water infrastructure is aging, and it will be very expensive to fix it. Host Robin Sussingham discusses the state of our sewage system with Josh Salman, investigative reporter for Gatehouse Media based at the Sarasota Herald Tribune; and Claude Tankersley, public works administrator for the city of St. Petersburg.

It might be one of the state's best kept secrets, but Florida wine making is a billion dollar industry! There are dozens of wineries across the state, employing nearly a hundred thousand people, with university research departments dedicated to viticulture. How can this hot, humid , fungus-friendly state support successful wine production? Host Robin Sussingham talks to Vince Shook, president of Florida Orange Groves Winery;  Chuck Hollweg, non-commercial hobbyist grape grower and wine maker; and Gina Birch, host of Grape Minds podcast from WGCU in Fort Myers.

You see it being sold everywhere now. You saw it everywhere even before it became legal on July 1st.  Is it regulated? Is it safe? What does it do? If you're confused about CBD oil, you're not alone.  Today on Florida Matters, we're going to try to get some clarity, with our guests: Pediatrician David Berger, owner of Wholistic Pediatrics & Family Care, and Jonathan Solomon, President of Proleve, a local company that produces lab-tested CBD.

They've had to battle shark attacks, pollution, massive beach developments and confusing light sources -- but sea turtles are bouncing back. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, green sea turtle nests, which numbered less than 300 in 1989, were up to 39,000 in 2017! Other populations have experienced similar success. We're talking to two people who have been closely involved in the effort to protect sea turtles: Joe Widlansky, also known as Turtle Joe, is Vice President of Operations for the nonprofit Sea Turtle Trackers; Ari Fustukjian is Senior Staff Veterinarian for The Florida Aquarium.    

July 20th marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, one of the most significant achievements in U.S. history. To mark the event, PBS stations will be airing a six-hour documentary "Chasing the Moon," which chronicles America's space race leading up to the first lunar landing and beyond. Host Robin Sussingham sits down with filmmaker Robert Stone who wrote, directed and produced "Chasing the Moon."

Summer is the time when we dream we'll have the leisure to sit down with a good book, or several. Maybe you want to use that time to read the Russian novel you never got to in college, or maybe it's a light-hearted romance that you can page through at the beach. This week on Florida Matters, we're getting recommendations for summer reads from a local expert, Tampa Bay Times Book Editor Colette Bancroft.