Everything is connected through earth systems. In 2018 Florida declared a State of Emergency due to a dual toxic algae blooms which caused mass wildlife fatalities, threats to public health and quality of life, and caused economic turmoil. Even after decades of research, there were still many scientific questions regarding these phenomena but the public demanded answers right away. Dr. Tracy Fanara entered uncharted territory as she was called on as an expert on local to international stages. This presentation will describe a journey in combating chaos through communication, collaboration, and community, and the path toward answering local questions globally. Dr. Tracy Fanara is an environmental engineer, research scientist, and communicator with a BS, ME, and PhD from the University of Florida’s College of Environmental Engineering. Tracy is the Coastal Modeling Manager for NOAA, where she manages coastal ocean modeling efforts to gain a better understanding of our earth systems and threats to human lives and livelihoods in a changing world. We hope you will come in person, but zoom info is available too; if interested in zoom or other questions, email [email protected] . You may reserve seats for this event at 49 West by calling 410-626-9796.