Publix is teaming up with military veterans at FORCE BLUE to respond to environmental emergencies in Florida
Nov. 09, 2023
As a part of our mission to be responsible citizens in our communities, Publix will be working with FORCE BLUE as the first company to fund their Quick Reaction Force (QRF), a team that will help Florida’s marine scientific community and environmental agencies respond quickly during coastal or marine environmental emergencies.
Publix funding
Our donation will provide FORCE BLUE the ability to quickly respond to environmental emergencies, covering all costs associated with the QRF deployments. This includes specialized training, equipment, travel, lodging and meals for up to six FORCE BLUE Special Operations veterans.
“We are honored to have the opportunity to work with FORCE BLUE to fund a team of military veterans who are dedicated to these important environmental efforts,” said Director of Environmental and Sustainability Programs Michael Hewett. “We remain committed to the needs of our communities and environment as we continue to do good, together.”
The QRF team
This team will consist of former Special Operations veterans and military-trained combat divers who can respond quickly to natural disasters or other events impacting the state’s coastal and marine environments.
QRF missions
The FORCE BLUE QRF will respond to
- coral bleaching events or coral die-offs
- coral disease outbreaks (such as stony coral tissue loss disease)
- hurricane damage to coastal or marine ecosystems
- marine debris cleanups after a storm and
- marine mammal strandings.
“Working with Publix to create a Quick Reaction Force that can help Florida’s marine scientific community whenever environmental emergencies arise has the potential to be a game changer, not just for the state, but for our planet,” said FORCE BLUE Executive Director Jim Ritterhoff. “It’s precisely the sort of collaboration FORCE BLUE was founded upon, and we are beyond proud of Publix for leading the way.”
About FORCE BLUE
Established in 2016 to address 2 seemingly unrelated problems — the rapidly declining health of our marine resources and the difficulty far too many servicemen and women have in adjusting to civilian life once their service ends — FORCE BLUE is the only nonprofit organization in the world that retrains and redeploys former Special Operations veterans and military-trained combat divers to work alongside scientists, environmental agencies and leaders on marine conservation missions.