Miami Beach, FloridaAs the 20th century dawned, mangroves blanketed this Florida island, which, at the time, was more of a swampy sandspit than solid land. Their gnarled roots standing knee-deep in tidal waters, mangroves were mainly known as the haunts of alligators, other reptiles, and blizzards of mosquitoes. And by 1915 they were gone. Carl Fisher, one of the founders of Miami Beach, had stripped the island bare as his first step toward transforming it into the fabled tourist playground it is today.
The 21st century vision of the future is different: City leaders see a resilient Miami Beach at the front lines of climate change, adapting to rising seas and worsening storms by installing massive pumps, elevating streets—and, yes, bringing back the
