Everglades Science and Restoration Center

Leading the science behind one of the largest environmental restoration projects on the planet

Collage of Everglades pictures including trail, orchid, aerial view and alligator

40+
Years working on research in the Florida Everglades
105+
Faculty, staff and students working on Everglades research, education and restoration
66
ForEverglades & Cristina Menendez Scholars since 2008

What We Do

The FIU Everglades Science and Restoration Center is committed to saving and protecting the environmentally and economically important Florida Everglades through data-driven science, long-term monitoring and community engagement. Located on the edge of Everglades National Park and with more than 100 researchers focused on solutions-centered projects, FIU is helping create an inspiring and sustainable future for this iconic yet imperiled ecosystem.

RESEARCH
FIU researchers have spent more than four decades guiding restoration and protection of water resources and wildlife in and around the Everglades. FIU leads the National Science Foundation's Florida Coastal Everglades Long-Term Ecological Research program.
EDUCATE
FIU provide hands-on instruction for students interested in careers supporting the Everglades. This includes degrees in sustainability and the environment, biology, chemistry, global sustainable tourism, engineering, public policy and more.
Learn more about FIU's academic offerings
ENGAGE
Our work includes collaborations with local, regional, state, tribal and national agencies, the Everglades Foundation and other community organizations. Our Everglades Outreach Team provides free commuity education programs.
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Our job is to advance Everglades restoration. We can only do this with the science behind us. FIU has been instrumental in helping us understand the vulnerabilities of the Everglades and in moving forward with restoration and preservation.
Stephen Davis, Chief Scientist for the Everglades Foundation

Research Areas

FIU has transformed scientific understanding of coastal ecosystem productivity, including the 1.5 million acres of the Florida Everglades.

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Environmental Monitoring
From sawgrass marshes to the seagrass meadows of Florida Bay, our scientists monitor real-time and long-term environmental conditions to reveal the causes and consequences of changes in the Everglades.
FIU CREST Center for Aquatic Chemistry and Environment

Extreme Events
Our scientists have been comparing how different hurricanes impact the Everglades for more than 30 years. They are also studying the impacts of fires, cold snaps, droughts and more.
Institute of Environment Projects

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Did You Know?

FIU led the research that established a water-quality standard to protect Everglades National Park from excess phosphorus. Decades of furtilizer use in nearby areas had polluted the River of Grass, leading to devastating ecosystem changes. By limiting phosphorous, our scientists helped chart a course for restoration. The standard was incorporated into the federal Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan and is still in place today.

Meet the Leadership Team

More than 105 FIU researchers are engaged in Everglades-related work including faculty, staff and students. To learn about our faculty's work, visit FIU Discovery.

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Todd Crowl
*Director of Institute of Environment*
Research areas include aquatic ecology and predator-prey dynamics.

Evelyn Gaiser
*Endowed George Barley Eminent Scholars Chair*
Research areas include algal ecology, diatoms and environmental change indicators.

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Home to the Florida Coastal Everglades Long Term Ecological Research program

One of only 27 long-term, integrative science programs funded by NSF, the FCE LTER is based at FIU and includes more than 140 scientists across 32 institutions who study how human activities interact with biological processes to transform the Everglades. Scientific findings inform and guide the science, assessment, advocacy and public awareness of Everglades restoration.

FCE-LTER

The Everglades

provides drinking water for 9 million Floridians, serves as a buffer for coastal storms, mitigates climate change by absorbing CO2, supports Florida fisheries, recreation and tourism, and is home for threatened and endangered species, some of the oldest cypress trees on the planet and the largest continuous seagrass meadow on Earth.

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