At the end of every Fluent in Floridian podcast, we ask our guests the same four questions. One of those questions is “Who is a Florida leader that you admire?”

In this compilation episode, you’ll hear fascinating answers to this question by Orlando Mayer Buddy Dyer, Florida Sports Foundation President Angela Suggs, U.S Attorney for the Northern District of Florida Larry Keefe, Tampa Bay Times Editor of Editorials Tim Nickens, Universal Orlando Public Relations Director Alyson Sologaistoa, Orlando Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell, former State Representative Matt Caldwell, and Florida Author Jeff Klinkenberg.

Growing up in Tampa as a young girl, Susan Glickman had a childhood that created a heart for advocacy.As a child, she saw her father open one of the few desegregated dentist offices in Tampa. As a young Jewish woman, she attended Episcopal and Catholic private schools. Early in her career, she helped her brother successfully run for Hillsborough County Commissioner.

Now, as a seasoned environmental advocate, Susan goes by the moniker Clean Energy Girl – a superhero battling big money interests in politics.

If you enjoyed this episode, you may enjoy our episodes with Audubon Florida Executive Director Eric Draper, Everglades Foundation CEO Eric Eikenberg and Miami-Dade County Chief Resilience Officer Jim Murley.

At 75 years young, Dr. Norman E. Thagard is a Floridian whose work has been immortalized in history books. While he jokes about being a foot-note on Sally Ride’s first trip to space, Dr. Thagard has had a long and illustrious career as a doctor, pilot, engineer, astronaut and first American Cosmonaut.

A two-time graduate of Florida State University, Dr. Thagard exemplifies a lifelong commitment to education. He attended the University of Florida in his mid-sixties in pursuit of an MBA, a degree that he felt he needed as he worked to co-found the Challenger Learning Center in Downtown Tallahassee.

In his interview with April Salter, Dr. Thagard discusses the early days of NASA’s space program, the intense training and schooling he endured to become an astronaut, and the nearly six-months he spent in space with a Russian crew.

Florida Polytechnic University President Dr. Randy Avent embodies what it means to bring application to education. A longtime researcher, Dr. Avent has led the university to go all in on STEM studies. When students aren’t in the classroom or library working hard, they’re likely to find Dr. Avent enjoying the beautiful campus, taking part in ping pong tournaments or attending the annual integral bee on campus.

Prior to Florida Polytechnic, Dr. Avent obtained his PhD. in Biomedical Mathematics and Engineering from the University of North Carolina, served at the Department of Defense and conducted research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

In his conversation with SalterMitchell PR President Heidi Otway, he discusses the many fields of study for students at Florida Poly, including brain mapping, autonomous vehicles and quantum communications.

Albert Einstein famously said, “we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” Thinking differently has never been a problem for Chris Castro, the Director of Sustainability for the City of Orlando and a self-proclaimed ‘ecopreneur,’ who has made it his mission to catalyze change through organizations such as IDEAS for US, Fleet Farming and Citizen Energy.

The UCF alumnus has given back to his adopted Central Florida community with his devotion toward ameliorating the symptoms of global warming. His goal: to create a model of sustainability that can be replicated throughout the world.Learn more about Chris and how he plans on saving the planet in his Fluent in Floridian episode with Heidi Otway.

If you enjoyed this episode, you might enjoy our episodes with Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Miami-Dade County CRO Jim Murley, and Florida Conservation Voters Executive Director Aliki Moncrief.

The man who never saw himself in local politics has presided over one of the most vibrant, up-and-coming cities in the Southeast.

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer has seen the city’s rapid growth over the years and has been proactive in finding solutions for some of its most pressing needs. By his own admission, Mayor Dyer feels positive about the work he’s been a part of in Orlando. He says that the barometer for being a good mayor is the ability to not worry about shopping at your neighborhood grocery store.

In his interview with April Salter, he addresses the highs and lows of his job, including the Pulse shooting and the ripple effect it’s had on the community at-large.

Content Warning: Discussion of violence. If you enjoyed this episode, you might enjoy our episodes with Orlando Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell, Orlando Representative Anna Eskamani, and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

You’ve never met a legislator like Representative Anna Eskamani. The first Iranian-American to hold public office in Florida ran a campaign rooted in her identity and values, and it paid off when she overwhelmingly won House District 47 in Central Florida.

She fights for women, children, immigrants and all of her constituents back home, but she’s also fighting for a more representative form of government. Representative Eskamani is front and center in the new age of American politics, and she hopes to shape the conversation through her new role.

In the newest episode of Fluent in Floridian, SalterMitchell PR Founder + CEO April Salter sits down with Representative Eskamani to discuss her first legislative session, her campaign’s authentic voice and how she inspires new leaders.

If you enjoyed this episode, you might enjoy our episodes with Former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, Former GOP Operative Mac Stipanovich, and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

The Super Bowl is coming! The Special Olympics are coming! The World Cup is (potentially) coming! Angela Suggs is the Paul Revere of Florida sports.In her role as president of the Florida Sports Foundation, she’s had the privilege of heralding all sorts of good news in Florida’s sports scene. In the latest Fluent in Floridian episode, Angela sits down with SalterMitchell PR President Heidi Otway to discuss Florida’s $57 billion dollar sports economy, the upcoming national and international events slated to be in Florida, and the value that sports provide to the state.

If you enjoyed this episode, you might enjoy our episodes with Heisman Winner Charlie Ward, Film Florida Executive Director, John Lux, and Universal Orlando Resort PR Director Alyson Sologaistoa.

Mac Stipanovich is known throughout Florida as a Republican cognoscente, so when he penned an open letter to his fellow Republicans in 2016 imploring them to vote for Hillary Clinton, it came as somewhat of a shock. Now he’s left the Republican party completely.He explains why in the latest episode of Fluent in Floridian. Mac sits down with SalterMitchell PR President Heidi Otway to discuss the state of political rhetoric in America, his involvement in Florida’s political history and the importance of voting (and knowing how to vote).

If you enjoyed this interview, you might also enjoy our episodes with Longtime Jeb Bush Advisor, Sally Bradshaw, Florida Politics Editor, Peter Schorsch and Orlando Sentinel Columnist, Scott Maxwell.