Nearly 200 Keep America Beautiful National Conference attendees gathered in Orlando, Florida, for the annual Build & Grow session, sponsored by Lowe’s. 

Attendees, including leaders from Keep America Beautiful’s network of community-based affiliates, Lowe’s Heroes, students from the University of Central Florida, volunteers from Brevard Zoo, 5th grade students from Sunrise Elementary, and members of Keep America Beautiful’s staff, assembled oyster mats by attaching oyster shells to aquaculture mats using zip ties. Now completed, a local partner will deploy the mats by binding them to an estuary floor in a quilt-like pattern where free-floating oyster larvae will attach to begin to build a new reef. The oyster reef, built from these mats, will be deployed in suitable areas of the Mosquito Lagoon, a region of the Indian River Lagoon located in Volusia County. View photos from the event on our Facebook page.