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Hello! My name is Sheny Salvador I graduated from South Dade Senior High in June 2022. I was born and raised in Florida and have been living here ever since. I am currently a student at Miami Dade College majoring in Business Administration. During my free time, I enjoy listening and discovering new music. I recently picked up drawing and baking and found it to be one of my interesting pass times that I found enjoyable!

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For my proposal, I will be conducting research for my alternative assignment based on the historical analysis of Miami's bus transit system. I will explain how the system of bus transportation compares back then to the current Florida's route system now. This is important because I will be able to explain the significant changes the system of bus transportation has made due to the rapid growth of Miami's population. I will be able to identify areas of improvement and explain how the route system evolved due to societal needs for better or worse.

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In the beginning of the nineteenth century, Florida's residents were considered isolated, only those who were in the Army were traveling from one place to another. The steamboat was previously used by the US Army that found the steamboats to be a costly and difficult use to transport military troops and goods, during the Second Seminole War. In the later events, civilian's saw the steamboat with a potential to be useful.

After the Civil War during the mid 1800s, steamboats were used to transport people places inside Florida like local towns or cities. The steamboats would make regular trips up and down the St. Johns River and was used often to transport new settlers and tourists. These steamboats where not only used to transport people from one place to another but was also used to transport supplies and goods and even mail through this waterway from of transportation.

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Henry Flagler's Railroad was created due to his vision of connecting Key West to the rest of the country. After being completed in 1912, in 1935 a hurricane that was considered to be the most intense caused damaged to the railroad. Due to the high cost of the maintenance and building it the company choose to sell it to the state of Florida and Monroe Country. In 1938 the Overseas Highway was opened, as of today we can still the historic bridges that has now went unused was converted into a pedestrian and recreational use.

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In Florida the Metrorail was officially opened to the public in 1984. This Metrorail system is owned and operated by the Miami-Dade Transit (MDT) and operated by the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA), which is used to connect Miami-Dade's Medley and Kendall. In 2016, a new project was proposed to extend the track mileage. When the Metrorail station was opened it extended from north from Overtown to Earlington Heights, then extended north from Okeechobee and finally from Okeechobee to Palmetto. Currently the Metrorail consists of a 36km (22.5 mile) route with 22 stations connecting between Miami International Airport, the Health District, Downtown Miami, Brickell, and connecting with Broward & Palm Beach counties. These Metrorail carries 50,000 passengers per day and continues to be used today.

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Back then, traditional bus system had fixed routes and schedules with limited flexibility. Today, modern bus transit system has been extended throughout Florida and been designed to be an easy system that meets the needs of the community. The modern form of modes of transportation and digital platforms has made it easier for passengers to see real time tracking and scheduling, plan their trip by viewing route information and real time updates. Not only that but because of modern technology, there has been digital payment options like contactless form of payment. Nevertheless, technology has brought a significant advancement in bus transit making it a more flexible reliability to passengers being extended all around Florida, available throughout the weekends and even faster bus time.

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Georgia-Florida Motor Lines bus at station - Miami, Florida.

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Over the years, there has been great evolvement of the growth of the overall transit that has expanded to cover many different parts of Florida due to the city's increasing population. Whether this includes, streetcars, trolleys, the Metrorail, Metro mover or the technological advancement of the bus transit system, Miami has embraced the priorities that the communities need. Overall, the history of transit in Miami reflects its continuous efforts to make the public transportation system an efficient and sustainable environment for its Florida residents.

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Hello, my name is Sheny Salvador, and I was born and raised in Homestead, Florida. I am a proud graduate of South Dade Senior High School, where I completed the Academy of Finance, a rigorous four-year academic track program. Currently, I am pursuing a degree in Business Administration as a full-time student at Miami Dade College. My passion for the business industry drives me to pursue a degree in business and I aspire to seek opportunities and be able to secure a position in Business Administration.

Although I am relatively new to the workforce, I have gained valuable skills and experience through paid internships. For instance, I have worked as a NAF Track intern in which I had the opportunity to develop my communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills through project-based learning. During this internship, I collaborated with my peers to evaluate digital programs used in the workforce by conducting interviews with professionals from various work fields. NAF, which stands for National Academy Foundation, helped me build a solid foundation for my future career in Business Administration.

Something that makes me unique is my ability to nurture creativity in others, despite not being exposed to art while growing up. I participated in a summer art camp, assisting K-5 students explore their artistic abilities.

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Climate change, particularly the rising of ocean temperature, has negatively impacted the health of coral reefs leading to a progressive decline over the years. Due to the rise in ocean temperatures, which causes coral bleaching, the effects lead the corals to turn white and expel the symbiotic algae living in their issues. Resulting in the loss of the coral's main source of food leading them to die. I feel that the decline in coral reefs is bad for the environment as the reefs provide habitat and shelter to many different kinds of marine species. The coral reefs not only affect the ecosystem but also affect people who depend on their services as a way to support themselves through tourism and jobs as fishermen. The decline in coral reefs is relevant to current events and societal issues as coral reefs are valuable ecosystem on Earth and its contribution to the economic.

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The video I watched was The Story of Electronics, I learned that because of old devices, that become broken or obsolete they become ease to throw away. This creates toxic in our society leading to "25 million tons" of e-waste every year.  Companies only care about making profit and not even concerned about our environment or where the e-waste even goes. Companies use the key strategy of "designed for the dump" which has caused e-waste to be either dumped in landfills, shipped overseas, burned or possibly recycled. We should enforce the demand of Extended Producer Responsibility or Product Takeback, so that these companies become responsible of creating toxic free electronics. By creating stronger laws on these companies to create devices that are toxic free, longer lasting and easily recyclable it would help avoid affecting the environment we live in. Making more greener products and focusing on a sustainable electronic industry can we shift from the dump mentality and impose greater access to electronics for our global society.

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In this video, what stood out to me the most was when the speaker said, "As population rise, alongside rates of industrialization and development, our energy decisions grow more and more important". I completely agree with him because the demand for energy, particularly burning fossil fuels like oil, gas or coal contributes to air pollution and climate change. If we focus on non-renewable resources, we decrease carbon dioxide into the atmosphere decreasing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. If we focus on reducing our energy usage, we are able to conserve our natural resources as well as enhancing the quality of life for all Earth's inhabitants.

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A guide to the energy of the Earth - Joshua M. Sneideman

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In the video "In Miami, how art intersects with technology and climate change", we explored how Linda Cheung, a social entrepreneur, worked with a mural artist Reinier Gamboa, and an app designer Juan Carlos Gallo to raise awareness about the risked of climate change. I was particularly interested how they used augmented reality as a form to express themselves more and interact with the arts in 3D. They used these colorful murals located in Miami's Wynwood neighborhood to portray what endangered animals face and how the impact of climate has on us. This is a way to inform the public particularly important to Florida residents, especially Miami who are vulnerable to the lasting effects of climate change including the sea level rises that leads to high levels of flooding.

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In Miami, how art intersects with technology and climate change

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When I use ChatGPT, I usually use it for my biology class. Specifically, when I do not understand a certain topic or term and would like to have examples and or a simple explanation instead of a dictionary definition. ChatGPT helps me understand something in many ways and can generate examples to help me better understand. It can also be used as a guide if I do not understand how to solve a problem step-by-step.  ChatGPT should be used especially in education specifically when someone is trying to learn and get additional help to explain complex concepts in simple terms. It can also be helpful to suggest improvement or even help generate ideas as it can be used whenever it is needed. My favorite AI would be ANI (Artificial Narrow Intelligence) used in everyday life like Siri as they can perform simple tasks, this can be useful when I am occupied or cannot physically set an alarm or read the time, send a message, or even answer a phone call.

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In this video, some cities are trying to offer free services on public buses.  In this video, it is said that those "who ride the bus make less than $50,000 a year". Many of D.C residents take advantage of these free services in order to save money. These individuals with lower incomes will benefit from the affordability and its reliability to commute to work.  I found it interesting that their research indicates that making buses free increased their ridership's but does not reduce the car usage significantly.

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Some cities turn to free public busing to counteract inequity

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After watching this video, I found it interesting that food waste contributes to 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions in the US. Edible food gets thrown away because of its size, its imperfections, misleading expiration dates, surplus of food which contributes to food waste.  If we were to properly handle and dispose of food, we can help mitigate its environmental impact and reduce its economic and environmental consequences.

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Food waste is contributing to climate change. What’s being done about it?

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The lecture I choose to watch was the "Flooding in Miami | Years of Living Dangerously", it follows Nicole Hernandz Hammer, a climate scientist who gives Jack Black an American actor a tour of Miami to understand the current problems caused by climate change. This is important because it emphasizes how Nicole is bring awareness of the issue of flooding in residential homes. Moreover, it highlights how the sea level rise impacts low-income communities who will lose their home, if there is no change. Nicole wants to inform and spread awareness to spark a positive social change.

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Flooding in Miami | Years of Living Dangerously

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www.railway-technology.com/projects/miamimetrorail/?cf-view

www.miamidade.gov/global/transportation/metrorail.page

https://www.floridastateparks.org/learn/flagler-railroadhttps://www.floridastateparks.org/learn/flagler-railroad

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Florida Seminole Tourism - Florida Seminole Tourism

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Early Florida Transportation leads the way for Tourism

From the railroad to automobiles, how we move from place to place has a big impact. Did you know that different kinds of transportation also helped change Florida's early tourist economy? Prior to modern forms of transportation, moving around within Florida was incredibly difficult. Cypress swamps and the ebb and flow of the Everglades made moving across the state challenging. Often, travelers would move around Florida by boat. But, this took a lot of time and didn't allow for much cross-state travel. So, how did Florida become the tourism powerhouse that it is today? This week, join us as we look at Florida transportation, and the impact it had on a fledgling tourist industry.

The Steamboat Era

Before railroads, the steamboat powered Florida. At the turn of the nineteenth century, most of Florida's residents were isolated, except from their immediate neighbors. Travel from one place to another was limited to patchwork paths or Army trails by foot. Seminoles within the Everglades relied on dugout canoes to travel from camps and trading posts. For everyone, moving from place to place was dangerous, time consuming, and difficult. But, in the mid-1800s, steam powered boats began chugging along Florida's largest rivers. The Second Seminole War played a significant role in developing steamboat activity in Florida. The US Army found the war difficult and costly to fight, and relied on steamboats to transport military troops and goods. Eventually, the potential was seen in the civilian sector. Soon, steamboats began to make regular trips up and down the St. Johns River.

The Steamboat Era reached its peak in the mid 1880s. Especially after the Civil War, passenger steamboats would transport new settlers and tourists across Florida. The steamboat lines on the St. Johns River made it one of Florida's first tourist destinations. Advertisements in magazines would tout Central Florida hot springs, boat excursions, and hunting and fishing opportunities. But, steamboats didn't only connect Florida to other places. They also began to connect places inside the Sunshine State. Travel between local towns and cities became easier, and goods, supplies, and passengers flowed along Florida's waterways. Hotels, health spas, and more began to pop up along rivers. Soon, railroads and eventually automobiles would edge out steam powered riverboats. But, certain towns, especially between Tampa and Port Charlotte, relied on steamboats to bring mail, supplies, and news well into the 20 th century.

Railroads through the Swamp

Railroads came to Florida around the same time as steamboat transportation began booming. Eventually, they would revolutionize the economy of Florida, allow for major commercial and residential development, cause a flourishing industry, and open the state wide for tourism. But, it would be a long road to get to that point. The first train to operate in Florida was the Lake Wimico line, which connected St. Joseph to the Apalachicola River in 1836.

Then, the Internal Improvement Act of 1855 gave railroad companies land in exchange for new lines and tracks. Railways also began to get more state support. Senator David L. Yulee became the president of the Florida Railroad, and ushered in more rail development. The Florida Railroad was completed in 1860, and connected Fernandina Beach to Cedar Key. Eventually, railroad developers began to link East and West Florida. But, the Civil War had a significant negative impact on the railroad's development.

The Civil War

During the Civil War, skirmishes and sabotage plagued rail lines. In some cases, Florida's Confederate government would take up rail lines to dissuade Union usage, or even seize existing rail lines and reuse them strictly for military use. It was only after the end of the Civil War that Florida railways could blossom to their full potential. Eventually, during the 1880-1890s, Henry Flagler would expand rail lines all the way from Jacksonville down the east coast to Miami, and eventually Key West.

Prior to the introduction of railways, Miami had only 300 people. That is a far cry from the metropolitan city of today! On the west coast, Henry Plant expanded the Plant System lines down from Tampa. Both Plant and Flagler also built hotels along the rail lines. These resort-like luxurious hotels were built to entice elite northern vacationers to stay the winter months. They represented a slice of the Gilded Age in Florida, juxtaposed with the recovering post-Civil War experience of other parts of the state.

Musa Isle and the Seminole Queen

With the railways opening up South Florida, people began to flock to Miami. Musa Isle tourist attraction opened on the Miami River in the early 1900s on a long-established fruit grove. The Indian Village at Musa Isle opened November 1 st, 1921. Seminole Willie Willie ran it. Tourists to the village would watch coontie flour grinding, sewing, crafting, canoe carving, tanning, and alligator wrestling. Guides would take tourists down the Miami River in canoes. Like other Seminole camps that would begin to pop up on the Tamiami Trail, Musa Isle became an iconic part of early Florida tourism. Seminole crafts and postcards from Musa Isle would make their way around the world. Seminoles would access the village by dugout cypress canoes. But, the tourist's main form of transportation to and from Musa Isle was by sightseeing boat, the Seminole Queen.

As Seminole tourism gained momentum in the 20s and 30s, riverboat tours became increasingly popular. In Fort Lauderdale on the New River, the Jungle Queen riverboat ferried travelers down the river to a Seminole village tourist camp starting in 1935. At Musa Isle, the Seminole Queen was an integral part of the tourist experience. It was the only boat to stop at the Seminole village on Musa Isle. Therefore, the success of the village itself relied on an enticing and unique boating experience. Advertised as a jungle cruise, brochures would talk up Musa Isles' tropical gardens filled with palms, citrus, and banana. Nestled in with a fish pond and bird sanctuary, the village gave tourists a glimpse of Seminole life. To entice customers, Seminole women would sew patchwork at the Bayfront boat concessions next to the docking point. Musa Isle closed in 1964 after 40 years of operation.

Automobiles and Tin Can Tourism

These transportation innovations prepared Florida to be a tourism powerhouse. Railways connected the land, and steamboats the waterways. But, nothing could compare to the freedom and power of the automobile. Automobiles first came to the Sunshine State around 1900, with early registration records beginning in 1905. Prior to that point, there were no speed or legal regulations around automobiles in Florida. Soon, a bill was passed to require the registration of vehicles, as well as laws outlining speed and safety restrictions. In 1915, the Dixie Highway Association began the planning and construction of paved roadways. These roads would connect the interior of the state, from Miami all the way to the Northern Florida border. This, along with other auto trails like the Tamiami Trail, would be the final piece of the puzzle to make Florida a tourism capitol.

Before, vacationers were limited to the rich resort-goers of Flagler and Plant's hotels. Now, a new kind of tourism gripped the United States. In the 1920s, "Tin Can Tourism" became popular. Ford's Model T were affordable enough for almost any family, and people took to the open road with zest. They explored Florida in their cars, seeking out small towns and hidden highlights. Some travelers had modified sleeping areas inside, or camped alongside their automobiles for weeks at a time. As automobiles developed, people invested in camper trailers. People soon came to Florida in droves, winter camping in some of the most rural parts of the state. Although hindered by the Great Depression and WWII, Tin Can tourism would surge again in the 1950s and continue to feed the tourism industry of Florida for decades.

The Tamiami Trail

The Tamiami Trail is just one place Tin Can Tourism flourished in South Florida. The long stretch of road connecting Tampa to Miami, cutting across the Everglades, was an industry changing link for Florida transportation, and tourism. The grand opening of the Tamiami Trail was April 26 th, 1928. The opening of the Trail allowed tourists to not only travel across the Everglades in a way they never had before, but also was its own sight to see. Camper-culture tin can tourists could see some of the most beautiful land South Florida had to offer through their own windshields. Even today, you can spot alligators, gorgeous flocks of birds, bears, and other wildlife along the Trail. Tree islands dot the landscape among the River of Grass, offering stunning views at your own pace.

Seminole and Miccosukee tourist camps began to pop up on Tamiami Trail as travelers became frequent. These camps became plentiful, and were a vital economic resource, as traditional ways of life became more difficult to sustain. The Everglades' landscape changes required them to adapt, and these tourist camps became a prime example of that adaptation. Tourists could see exhibition shows like alligator wrestling and hunting displays, watch patchwork and doll crafters, and see scenes from Seminole camp life.

Early tourist camps like these, and Tom Tiger's camp discussed last week, were incredibly important to Seminole people. Through them, Seminoles were tightly tied with the Florida tourism industry, a relationship which has continued through present times. Without these shifts in early Florida transportation, as well as Seminole tourist camps and innovation, Florida tourism would not be what it is today!

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Early Florida Transportation leads the way for Tourism - Florida Seminole Tourism

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Boats, trains, and automobiles - oh my! This week, join us as we drive through Florida with a close look at early transportation methods, and how they changed Florida tourism forever.