When I returned from a short trip to Florida back on March 9, I thought my focus would largely be on writing the stories collected from visits to Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve. While I was able to report on the impacts oil and gas drilling have had on Big Cypress, additional stories and videos on exploring the Flamingo area of Everglades, including the new eco-tents, and paddling the Turner River in Big Cypress, have been put on the back-burner while we work to stay on top of the coronavirus pandemic and its impacts on the National Park System.

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A sobering report was issued the other week. The headline alone told the story: LOSING THE NEWS: The Decimation of Local Journalism and the Search for Solutions.

What value do you place on information? You can buy a flavored coffee at Starbucks for $4.50 or so, and one Impossible Burger will run you $10. One of each a week would run you more than $750 a year. How much is editorially independent news about national parks and protected areas every day of the year worth to you?