Commissioner Arnold Supports Live Wildly and Their Land Conservation Efforts

• 9 July 2024
• Category: District 2
• Tags: 2024

The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) learned more about the Live Wildly Foundation in May. I was proud to sponsor their presentation. You can watch the video from the May 21, 2024 BOCC meeting. This year’s Sing Out Loud Festival is entitled the Live Wildly Showcase. Sing Out Loud is proud to partner with the Live Wildly Foundation to raise awareness of the importance of conserving wild Florida – the natural landscapes and wildlife that make Florida so exciting to explore.

Live Wildly applies an entrepreneurial approach to protecting wild Florida while seeking to balance smart growth, a robust economy, and a connected, resilient landscape. Their priority is the Florida Wildlife Corridor. This 18-million-acre wildlife superhighway is a model for public-private partnership, citizen advocacy, and grassroots support. Live Wildly launched in April 2022 and is a 501(c)3 organization. Stretching from the Panhandle to the Everglades, the Florida Wildlife Corridor is a state-wide network of public and private lands encompassing nearly 18 million acres or almost 50% of the Sunshine State.

The Florida legislature signed the Florida Wildlife Corridor Act into law in June 2021 with unanimous bipartisan support. Since then, over 160,000 acres of land have been approved for conservation easements and acquisitions within the Florida Wildlife Corridor.

At the end of May, they officially launched their Join the Movement campaign, inviting people across the state (residents and visitors alike) to sign the pledge to protect wild Florida! By signing the pledge, people join a vibrant community committed to ensuring that beautiful places across our state exist now and for future generations. To further conservation efforts in the state, Live Wildly is donating $1 towards land conservation for every person who signs the pledge.

You can learn more at www.livewildly.com/join-the-movement. Here is a link to a special video released about Live Wildly.

Here are a few examples of how the BOCC supports our land conservation and outdoor uses:

The St. Johns County Land Acquisition and Management Program (LAMP) Conservation Board identifies, evaluates, and recommends lands to be acquired in the county’s unincorporated areas for conservation, management, and passive recreational opportunities. The LAMP Conversation Board assists with acquiring and conservating lands that enhance or promote ecological communities, green space, water resources, outdoor passive recreation, and historical, educational, and scientific activities. LAMP ranks lands to achieve the best program goals, which include but are not limited to protecting habitats and listed species, providing connections to natural corridors, and protecting and interpreting cultural resources. The current LAMP balance is more than $3.3 million. Learn more at www.sjcfl.us/lamp.

Our Parks and Recreation Department has an outdoor recreation team called Explore SJC that offers a wide diversity of programs that allow residents and visitors to experience St. Johns County’s amazing natural areas. Our programs highlight various unique aspects of our county, including paddling our waterways, biking our inland trails, and walking our beautiful beaches. Programming is offered for all ages and abilities, from summer camps to adaptive paddling to veteran-exclusive programs. There is a program for everyone, and our programming lineup includes biking, hiking, history special events, kayaking, paddle boarding, astronomy, fishing, photography, nature book club, geocaching, and archery. Learn more at www.sjcfl.us/explore-sjc.