Growing up in South Florida, Roberto Lama spent as much time underwater as he did on land. Surfing, diving, and exploring reefs gave him a love for the ocean – and a front-row seat to its decline.

“I felt like I really needed to be working on the issue I cared about the most,” Lama told Refresh Miami . “Corals were dying, bleaching events were happening, and I couldn’t just sit by.”

Having studied bioengineering and software at Stanford, Lama was working in biotech when he decided to pivot. Instead of developing new lab tools, he launched Endur , a Palm Beach-based startup focused on a different barrier: the red tape that keeps solutions from reaching the ocean in the first place.

Permitting, Lama explained, is one of the biggest bottlenecks for coastal projects. Approvals to deploy

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