Florida Foraging on YouTube
If there is one individual with incomparable connection to people wanting to learn about plants and permaculture in Florida, it is Andy Firk. A passionate botanical advocate and guide to the flora of our state, much of his time is packed with travel to varied gardens, nurseries, communities and wild areas. Andy has made a vocation of becoming familiar with what’s here at our doorstep and regions. Not only a friend of the forager, he is a fellow among horticulturists carefully cataloguing plants and resources with his website FLORIDAFORAGING.COM
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Andy is a key inspiration in the development of the Convergence Grant Endowment program, always working to foster community and practice of shared resources we strive to serve with this program.
A vote for this grant application will contribute to all we do in permaculture for Florida.
YOUTUBE CHANNEL LAUNCH
Since 1993 Andy has travelled to some 1,500 locations and connected with over 150,000 people in the search for edible, medicinal and decorative plants.
“I now have a dream to create a YouTube channel detailing my botanical and nature adventures. I receive many emailed questions relating to plants and nature, and although I spend a lot of time answering them I just can’t reply to every one.. Currently there are over 5,000 messages I have yet to answer.. I’ve wondered how to do this and still live a blissful life!
A video channel will definately help. I have enjoyed making videos with friends using their equipment, and to do it myself would streamline this process and allow me to capture every event or stop I make adding it to my library.
These would include field trips to organic farms, clips from events, springs, beaches, and parks. My focus is on botany, wildcrafting, gardening, deep ecology, permaculture, cooking & recipes, habitat restoration, and environmental health. Species profiles would highlight wild edible plants, heirloom veggies, bamboos, tropical fruits, mushrooms, native plants, and more. For those who know me, you know that I am a plant nerd who loves exact details and deep research. I will also be recording one-on-one interviews with experts as well as some of their various lectures statewide. “
All of these videos will be available on the YouTube channel with links embedded at FLORIDAFORAGING.COM
Professional videography equiptment is essential for the quality shoots Andy wants to include in this library. He already has a GoPro Hero8 Black action video camera and extending rod, ND filter set with lens protectors following a successful fundraiser earlier this year.
What he still needs includes:
- a shotgun mic,
- lighting attachment,
- tripod,
- battery charging set,
- clip-on personal mic,
- waterproof camera case for underwater footage