Welcome to the Tybee Island Marine Science Center podcast, recorded in the Ship Watch Loft. On this episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos welcomes Brooke Chase, host of the Simply B. Sustainable Podcast and co-organizer of Green Drinks Savannah, a monthly gathering (second Tuesday at 6:00) for ecologically minded community and action.

Chase shares how she and Chloe revived Green Drinks after reconnecting with a former organizer and describes the event’s growth and rotating locations and topics, including an upcoming Forsyth Park tree walk.

She discusses her lifelong drive to reduce waste, emphasizing that imperfect efforts by many matter more than perfection by a few, and frames consumer choices as “money is your vote.” Practical tips include “refuse, repair, reduce, reuse, recycle,” avoiding plastic and styrofoam, composting (highlighting Core Compost), using ABC Glass recycling in Thunderbolt, buying secondhand via Goodwill, Facebook Marketplace, and Buy Nothing, and creating native pollinator gardens. They also note concerns about AI’s water and energy impacts.

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What's happening at Tybee Island Marine Science Center

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Partnership and Donation Opportunities

Proudly produced by Dee Daniels Media Podcast Network

FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Welcome to Tybee Podcast

00:37 Meet Brooke Chase

01:53 Reviving Green Drinks

04:58 Why Sustainability Matters

06:28 Small Choices Big Impact

09:40 Thrifting and Buy Nothing

11:57 Clothing Swaps and Waste

12:39 AI and Environmental Costs

14:42 Community Sustainability Partners

16:51 Easy Sustainable Habits

19:07 Hope and Learning Together

20:57 Next Green Drinks Details

22:26 Final Tips and Farewell

23:45 Science Center Closing Message

Host Jessica Leigh Lebos sits down at the Tybee Island Marine Science Center with Cloe LeMaire, an environmental scientist and the Savannah Reuse System Outreach Coordinator for Savannah Riverkeeper. They dive deep into the major pressures currently facing the Savannah River, from port-driven growth to the rapid explosion of regional warehouses.

What We Cover in This Episode

• The Warehouse Boom & Public Data: Cloe walks through a public GIS dashboard built alongside 100 Miles and Ogeechee Riverkeeper that tracks developers, permits, square footage, and timelines—with expansion plans heading into South Carolina.
• Trash Traps & Brand Data: Discover how 12 NOAA-funded trash traps installed since 2024 are capturing stormwater litter and tracking specific brand data, revealing a heavy footprint of takeout-related styrofoam.
• Reusables & AI Data Centers: Cloe shares updates on designing an open-loop reusable cup system for Savannah and discusses the delicate organizing happening around a proposed AI data center along the river.
• River Science & Restoration: The conversation rounds out with a look at ongoing oyster research, baseline water-quality monitoring supporting the restoration of river cutoff bends, and upcoming channel deepening and widening proposals.

Get Involved Cloe invites listeners to join Savannah Riverkeeper, make use of their community reporting tools, and roll up their sleeves for a cleanup at Lake Mayer Park on September 12th.

Learn more about the voices and topics in this episode:

What's happening at Tybee Island Marine Science Center

Resources:

Become a MEMBER

Volunteer at Tybee Island Marine Science Center

Partnership and Donation Opportunities

Proudly produced by Dee Daniels Media Podcast Network

Host Jessica Leigh Lebos welcomes Tybee Island Maritime Academy science teacher and assistant principal Katie Holliday to the Tybee Island Marine Science Center podcast to discuss TIMA’s place-based, maritime-centered K–8 curriculum and daily experiential learning on Tybee’s beach and marshes.

Recorded from the Ship Watch Loft at Tybee Island Marine Science Center.

Holliday explains TIMA is a lottery-based charter school within Savannah-Chatham County Public School System that integrates STEAM through project/problem-based learning and community partnerships, including a NOAA Ocean Guardian native plant garden planted at the Marine Science Center with support from All The Buzz nursery. They highlight TIMA’s MATE ROV robotics program (earning high-school engineering credit) and a recent second-place finish.

Holiday shares her 17-year teaching journey and stewardship goals, discusses the school’s purchase of the former Thunderbolt Elementary to potentially expand beyond Tybee, notes TIMA’s established cellphone collection policy, and outlines thoughtful approaches to student AI use and STEAM recertification.

Learn more about the voices and topics in this episode:

What's happening at Tybee Island Marine Science Center

Resources:

Become a MEMBER

Volunteer at Tybee Island Marine Science Center

Partnership and Donation Opportunities

Proudly produced by Dee Daniels Media Podcast Network