The Montessori world descends on Sarasota through this weekend for the 22nd Annual International Montessori Education Conference. The event will bring 400 school leaders from 11 countries to the Hyatt Regency Sarasota. 

Tim Seldin, president of the Sarasota-based Montessori Foundation, says the event shows Sarasota’s increasing importance to education philosophy. “And Montessori is becoming an increasingly influential voice in the world of education,” he says.

The Montessori education philosophy, named for founder Maria Montessori, focuses on a child-centered approach and observations of children.

The conference, which launches today and continues through Sunday, will be produced by the foundation and by the International Montessori Council, which also calls Sarasota home. The Foundation relocated to Sarasota from Washington, D.C. in 2002 and the Council serves largely as the membership arm of the organization.

Filmmaker Jan Selby will premiere the documentary Building the Pink Tower at the conference this evening. The film explores the growing influence of Montessori schools, of which there are now more than 5,000 in the United States.

The event will feature keynote speeches by Seldin and Council Executive Director Kathy Leitch, along with workshops on how the Montessori method in teaching problem-solving, leadership and elementary mathematics, along with addressing problems like “Motivating the Unmotivated Child” and administrative issues like creating hospitality within a school.

Seldin, who likes to call Sarasota a “Montessori city in some ways,” says the region provides a perfect venue for the event thanks to cultural amenities and international appeal.

The community serves as home to the Newgate Montessori School Sarasota, a lab school for the foundation, an institution Seldin says has attracted more than 100 families to move to the region. 

“Sarasota is a center of innovation and the arts,” Seldin says. That serves the school well, he says, because the Montessori method is also about cutting edge innovation, not with technology but with human education and developing relationships with students and the community. 

When positing the theory of evolution, Charles Darwin marveled at the “endless forms” found in the natural world, where plants and animals alike adapt to their surroundings in a dizzying array of varied morphology. At Selby Gardens, the botanically minded artists behind this year’s Orchid Show, aptly titled Endless Forms, find that same wonder within one taxonomical family. Open through November 25, the show celebrates the beauty and diversity of the orchid family through both a gorgeously redesigned Conservatory complete with living sculptures and a curated selection of scientific specimens on display in the Payne Mansion.

In the Conservatory, Selby Gardens’ living plant collection is on stunning display through a series of creative sculptural elements running through the space, each designed to keep the viewer’s mind on the concept of forms. Upon entering, “Van-brellas” tower above on bamboo stilts, the circular wooden hoops with chicken wire mesh housing epiphytic Vanda orchids that dangle like floral chandeliers. Emerging from behind the Van-brellas, the Ribbon arcs from the ground to snake through the canopy of the entire Conservatory like a blossoming rollercoaster track. Made of PVC panels and faux-moss, 180 feet of countless purple Phalaenopsis orchids and pink Guzmania bromeliads guide visitors from end to end of the exhibition.

In between, stop for the perfect picture under the similarly sculpted and tillandsia-adorned decorated Infinity Loop, placed over a quaint bridge and water feature combo. And keep an eye out for the cleverly created “Van-shrooms,” which turn “gobs” of blooming Vanda orchids and their tangling roots into birds-nest mushroom caps atop trunk-like plinths.

In addition to sculptural elements, orchids of all shapes, sizes and sorts are brought out from the eight greenhouses on the Selby Gardens campus to showcase the variety of the orchid family. These selections change on the regular, according to what’s in bloom and what looks good on any given day, so visitors who have already stopped by the Orchid Show this year have plenty reason to return. “It’s a constant revolving door,” says Addie Worth, a greenhouse horticulturalist with Selby Gardens. “Every day it changes.”

And don’t forget the Orchidarium, says Worth, hidden off to the side of the Conservatory and showing off a selection of Selby Gardens’ smaller orchid varieties, which might otherwise get lost in the big displays.

On the other side of campus, completing Endless Forms, Payne Mansion highlights the research side of the botanical equation, showing how scientists collect, study and order their specimens. In one room, see a series of “trifectas”—displays that incorporate herbarium specimens (pressed plants), spirit specimens (plants in liquid preservative) and sketches that include relevant details about the plant and its discovery and harvest. Also see rare botanical books on display and get a glimpse into 19th century botany. On the opposite side of the mansion, find a terrarium and an interactive digital display.

Endless Forms will be on display at Selby Gardens through November 25. 

Pictured: "Endless Forms" at the 2018 Orchid Show. Photo by Matthew Holler.

With the imminent arrival of PINC 2018 on December 6, once again promising a day full of passionate speakers covering a broad and varied range of topics, SRQ went behind the scenes with a few of these incoming artists, activists and entrepreneurs for a quick taste of what’s to come. An author, consultant and public speaker, Kathy Bryan is also a survivor of human trafficking. Today she works with medical professionals, law enforcement, nonprofits and more across the country to bring an end to human trafficking.

SRQ: Why did you want to come to Sarasota and spend time with this audience in particular? Greenberg: Not only was I honored to be included, but I was drawn to the celebration of people. Humans and their diverse, intriguing, creative differences are truly our world's most precious resource. PINC celebrates people. I love people. Seems like a terrific match to me, and there honestly isn't one audience I would take a pass on sharing the truths of trafficking with, because everyone needs to know.

What is the biggest myth or misunderstanding about human trafficking that you come across most often? It doesn't happen here. Human trafficking doesn't exist in my community/neighborhood/school, etc. The truth is it occurs everywhere—every country, city and town. The other big myth is that we should be worried about kidnapping. The truth is only 5% of the trafficking in America originates with kidnapping.

Do you believe we are winning the fight against human trafficking? I believe we are making a difference. I believe that we can continue to do better and we can mitigate the number of people it happens to. If we truly want to end it, we have to live in a world that honors people, all people. One in which we live the truth that your freedom ends only when it infringes upon mine. 

Pictured: Kathy Bryan. Photo courtesy of PINC Sarasota.

In celebration of seven years serving the Sarasota community fresh, local seafood, Duval’s is thrilled to host a “Floribbean” birthday party dedicated exclusively to their loyal patrons. In addition to their regular menu, Chef Nils Tarantik has dreamed up a delectable menu worth celebrating. Boasting mouth-watering options such as crab fritters with chipotle remoulade, crispy spice rubbed boneless chicken, grilled Caribbean spice rubbed flank steak, and many other decadent choices, the night promises to be one of decadent indulgence.

It’s not a party without drinks and entertainment, and the evening will be jam-packed with plenty of both. Duval’s award-winning bartenders will be serving up handcrafted rum cocktails and the relaxing sounds of steel drums from The Island Boys band will last long into the night. Put on your best island attire and visit Duval’s on November 14th for a celebration to remember! 

Duval's Fresh. Local. Seafood.

Crews have begun staging equipment at Lido Beach in preparation for an emergency renourishment project that is scheduled to begin as early as this weekend. The contractor for the City of Sarasota’s short-term project, Coastal Dredging Corp., will spend the next few days laying pipe and bringing in equipment, with the renourishment work to follow. The project will take approximately 90 days to complete. The emergency renourishment is intended to address the critical erosion of Lido Beach. Approximately 185,000 cubic yards of sand from New Pass will be utilized to renourish Lido. The beach will remain open through the duration of the project. Beachgoers are advised to use caution and stay aware of active work zones and any equipment operating in the area. The project cost of $3.9 million is being shared by the City of Sarasota, Sarasota County, the state and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); the City’s funding portion is approximately $600,000.

The City and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are also proceeding with a larger, long-term renourishment of Lido Beach that would regularly recycle additional sand from Big Pass over a 50-year period as needed. That project is expected to begin in the fall of 2019, pending ongoing legal challenges. 

City of Sarasota

Dr. Justin Sirianni, a pain management specialist with Coastal Orthopedics, recently earned board certification in both pain management and anesthesiology from The American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA). The ABA works alongside physicians to promote lifelong learning and advance the highest standards in patient care. Board certification is a professional distinction that symbolizes a physician has met the highest standards of practice in a medical specialty. Sirianni joined the staff of Coastal Orthopedics in August 2017. As a pain management physician who specializes in interventional treatments of the neck and spine, he focuses on helping patients restore function and get back to being active. 

Coastal Orthopedics

Long-time Venice resident Michael T. Hartley, CEO of DKE Inc., Comprehensive Wealth Counsel, was awarded the Advanced Certificate in Family Wealth Advising (ACFWA) and honored as a Fellow of the Family Firm Institute at the 2018 FFI Global Conference in London, England. FFI Fellow status signifies that Michael Hartley has completed an advanced program of study as part of the Family Firm Institute’s Global Education Network, presented at FFI annual conferences, published in FFI publications and has been a member of FFI for more than 10 years. The certificates are presented to individuals who have achieved comprehensive professional knowledge and gained significant expertise that can be used as value to family business owners and family wealth clients. This distinction further ensures that the highest standards in professional best practices will be implemented. 

DKE Inc.

We salute JFCS of the Suncoast and USF Sarasota-Manatee for their regional programs supporting veterans in our won backyard. Reach about the initiavites that have made a positive impact at home.