Jessica Meszaros
Reporter/HostI’ve been a voice on public radio stations across Florida since 2012, working for stations in Miami, Fort Myers and now Tampa.
My main role for WUSF is to report on climate change and the environment, while taking part in NPR’s High-Impact Climate Change Team. I’m also a participant of the Florida Climate Change Reporting Network.
I enjoy giving the audience an immersive sensory experience by using active sounds and descriptive writing.
Over the years, my work has been recognized by the Radio Television Digital News Association, Sunshine State Awards, Florida Association of Broadcast Journalists, Public Media Journalists Association, Green Eyeshade Awards, and Climate Adaptation Center.
I’ve also been a recipient of a few fellowships: Natl. Science, Health, Environment Reporting Fellow; RTDNA N.S. Bienstock Fellow; and Kopenhaver Center Fellow.
Some of my hobbies, like camping, hiking and kayaking, have coincided with my beat to continue giving me a fresh take of the human experience within the natural world.
Born and raised in South Florida, I’m a second-generation immigrant. My mom and dad both escaped communist countries — Cuba and what was then known as Czechoslovakia, respectively. I feel that my family’s unique background gives me a deeper understanding of the complexities each person brings to a story.
If you have a story idea about the environment or sustainability, you can contact me at jmmeszaros@wusf.org.
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Florida and a handful of other states declined to apply for millions of federal dollars for projects to draw down carbon emissions. Now it falls to cities to make their own climate plans.
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A cancerous chemical, only recently on the radar of environmental officials, called 1,4-Dioxane has been detected on the property. It spreads fast out and down when it comes into contact with groundwater. -
Phase one of this three-part expansion includes a new restaurant, welcome center, plant research center and gift shop. -
Genetic testing will help Florida ranchers select and breed cattle that better tolerate the heat. -
Florida could achieve net zero by 2050 while growing the economy, creating jobs, and reducing the costs of energy and transportation for consumers, according to the report. -
Tampa Electric customers shared how their energy bills impact their lives. We heard from a senior citizen, a college student and a mother of six, among a couple dozen others. -
Some Florida households will get discounts for efficiency upgrades that are predicted to save at least 20% of the home’s energy use, getting back between $2,000 and $4,000. Plus, low- to moderate-income families could get up to $14,000 for purchasing high-efficiency equipment. -
Federal environmental officials had recommended criteria in 2019 for two of the most common cyanotoxins, but advocates and the mayor Stuart say Florida never implemented them, nor explained their decision not to do so. -
For TECO customers, the average bill would rise to $160.93 a month in January 2025. And for Duke customers, it would mean an increase of $16.48 per month. -
The data was used to distribute federal money to states to replace the pipes. An advocate thinks Florida's numbers were likely inflated. Florida's DEP says the feds' methodology is flawed.
