The Environment Cadet Programme has begun again and this year is even more exciting than the last! This year schools will be involved in a number of projects. These projects fall under the broad headings of Energy Conservation, Ecosystems, Biodiversity and Sustainable Living. Each school is required to choose one project from each category and work on that project during the school’s term. At the end of each month, schools must submit artwork, poems, articles, stories, pictures, poems and so on, which gives the general public information on what they have been doing. This will then be put into a newsletter which will be distributed to the general public.

Service organisations and youth groups are also invited to be a part of this environmental movement. Click on the attachments below for the cadet programme information.

EcoZone Summer Camp 2011 is just around the corner! EcoZone Summer Camp will run from the 4th to 29th July. This year’s activities include Home Economics, Drama and Singing, Arts and Craft, Gardening, and a lot of field trips. Some of the field trips that campers will go on include bird watching, beach picnics, Antigua Rainforest Canopy Tour, and so on.

The camp is geared towards ages 5-11. Activities begin at 7:30 daily and end at 4:30 p.m. The venue is still to be determined.

This year some of our proud sponsors are:

- the Sustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism (SIRMM)

- Harney Motors and Local Oil Ltd

- West Indies Oil Company (WIOC)

For more information about the camp see the attached brochure!

Registration closes on June 17th.

EcoZone Summer Camp brochure

ecozone registration form

Click on the links below and listen to the jingles by the schools that won the first ever Environmental Cadet Biodiversity Jingle Competition!

Sunnyside Tutorial Sunnyside

Pares Primary School Pares

Five Islands Primary Five Islands

Seventeen schools, both Primary and Secondary, competed in the first ever Environment Cadet Biodiversity Jingle Competition. The competition was organised by the Environment Division in order to make children more aware of the issues relating to biodiversity and how it can be preserved.

The Environment Cadets created songs that spoke about specific flora and fauna in Antigua and Barbuda and discussed the growing concern of littering and pollution in the twin-island state.

The winners for the competition were Sunnyside Tutorial, Pares Primary and Five Islands Primary. The top Secondary school prize was won by the Antigua Girls’ High School, while Sunnyside Tutorial won the top Primary school prize. Both schools were presented with a fruit basket by Mrs. Andrea Marshall, Environment, Health and Safety Manager of Sandals Grande Antigua Resort and Spa.

The winning schools will have the opportunity to visit Pelican Lodge Studios where they will record their jingles professionally, and were presented with invitations to the studio by Vaughn Skerritt, a representative from Pelican Lodge Studios. The jingles will be aired on national radio stations on 22 May, the International Day of Biological Diversity. The three winning schools also received the SIRMM Biodiversity Award.

“I was extremely impressed with the courage of many of the performers as well as the huge effort they put into their performances. It was great to see school kids putting in so much time and energy for a good cause, such as the one for raising awareness on the importance of Antigua and Barbuda’s biodiversity” stated Frances Fuller, Environment Officer within the Environment Division.

The cadets were treated to a performance by Tian Winter with his hit song “Baby I”. Winter was one of the judges for the competition. Also on the judging panel were Quincy Etinoff, organist and choirmaster of the Ebenezer Moravian Church, and Vinema Jarvis, Director of Sanctuary.

The Environment Division wishes to thank all those who participated in the competition and looks forward to hosting similar competitions in the future.

Cadets from the Grace Christian Academy organised a bake sale to raise funds for persons suffering after the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti. The group was able to raise $522.11. These cadets are to be commended for their humanitarian efforts.

Watch the following video and post your thoughts and comments.

ALERT :: YUNGA :: ALERT :: YUNGA :: ALERT :: YUNGA :: ALERT

Biodiversity art competition

Recent developments from YUNGA, 29 January 2010

This is the International Year of Biodiversity and on the 12 August it will also be the International Year of Youth. So……………

You have no excuse get involved, be active, create the change )

This year will be packed with activities and we will keep you up to date on all of them.

The first initiative is the biodiversity art competition -> take part and you could see your artwork all over the world )

For more information go to: www.fao.org/climatechange/youth/en/

So what are you waiting for, its your year lets go )

Teachers at Cades Bay

On Friday 22nd January forty-five (45) Environment Cadet teachers from across Antigua and Barbuda took part in a workshop designed to teach them about Biodiversity. The workshop was planned by Environment Education Officer, Arica Hill.

Hill stated “Today was the start of an important part of the Environment Cadet Programme. The cadet programme for the year involves discussions and field trips on biodiversity and ecosystems. However, many of the teachers that administer the programme are not science teachers, and often know very little about specific environmental issues. So, the Environment Division took this opportunity to train the teachers. We cannot expect them to teach without giving them the necessary tools, so today was a very important step in that direction.”

The first part of the workshop was held at the Heritage Hotel where Project Coordinator of the Sustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism (SIRMM), Ruleta Camacho, gave a presentation on biodiversity.

“SIRMM is pleased to be a part of this endeavour to sensitise teachers about important environment issues. We intend to continue to work with the Environment Cadet programme on similar projects”. SIRMM is also a sponsor of the workshop and the Environment Cadet Programme.

The second part of the workshop was a field trip to the Cades Bay area. There, Senior Fisheries Officer, Tricia Lovell, gave the teachers in-depth information on biodiversity as it relates to mangroves. The teachers were able to relate what they had learned in the ‘classroom’ with what exists in nature.

At the end of the day Hill stated that she was pleased with the overall workshop since she believes that teachers are more equipped to run the Environment Cadet programmes in their schools. She further stated that she looks forward to organising similar workshops throughout the year.

This is a not-for-profit film by Yann Arthus-Bertrand. The film seeks to bring awareness to environmental issues by providing background on how planet earth developed into what it is now. It is an interesting film which highlights the interconnectedness of all things on earth. Enjoy!

Here is an interesting video on ocean acidification and the effects on marine life. Take some time to watch it, and if you have any comments, please feel free to do so.