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 Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a law that prevents cities or counties from creating protections for workers who labor in the state's often extreme and dangerous heat.
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A farmworker, advocate and member of the medical community weigh in on Gov. Ron DeSantis signing a bill that will prohibit local governments enacting laws to protect outdoor workers from extreme heat. -
The Miami area has had the highest documented levels of PFAS chemicals in Florida drinking water. Although the Tampa region is much lower, utilities will likely need to take action. -
“It spread so rapidly in the Caribbean, which suggests it could spread quickly through the Pacific," said Isabella Ritchie, a Ph.D. student at USF and the lead author of a recent study. -
Mote's president and CEO said the partnership will "enhance science-based coral resilience and restoration approaches despite the threats that we're seeing today." -
Although federal wildlife officials protected areas where bonneted bats currently live, conservation advocates say protections need to go further to include locations the bats will eventually migrate to due to sea-level rise. -
"If we don't manage them properly, then those seagrasses will be less resilient, and we could potentially degrade a very, very valuable habitat," said Tom Frazer of USF. -
In 2022, the top items collected during the International Coastal Cleanup were cigarette butts, plastic bottles, food wrappers, bottle caps, plastic bags, foam and plastic food containers, paper cups and plates, and plastic straws or stirrers. -
Global transportation and trade, compounded by people continuing to alter the local environment, has led to the spread of mosquitoes around the world. But how will these insects deal with a warming world? -
Earth breached a key temperature recently. A climate scientist explains how this warming and consequent weather patterns could impact the 2024 hurricane season, which begins June 1.
