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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
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Though Coastal Awareness Month ended last month, the Ministry of Tourism is continuing a partnership with Dolphins Encounters on Blue Lagoon Island to educate children on the importance of conservation and the environment.
Assistant Director of Marine Education at Dolphins Encounters’ Project Beach Linzi Knowles Belton said the company is happy to be a part of the Coastal Awareness Committee.
“We have two roles. We assist with the field trips. So for Coastal Awareness Month, the Coastal Awareness Committee will send various groups out on field trips. One of them will be at Dolphin Encounters for our Reef Ranger programme. They get into the water with the Dolphin and they get to learn about the dolphins – how we train them, take care of them and so it is an up close interaction that the kids get to do,” she said.
“The other role that we get to do is we help with beach clean ups. So the Coastal Awareness Committee will choose a beach whether it’s in Nassau or on a Family Island. We just did Abaco in April and we organized the cleanup and put together the data that we found in terms of how much trash is on the beach.”
Ms. Belton said it’s important to educate children about the environment.
“It’s very important because we want the children to learn about the importance of the environment and protecting it. Of course you are going to learn in the classroom but you get to meet an animal right here at Dolphin Encounters,” she said.
“We want to make sure they can recycle when they can. We partner with Cans For Kids and then we have other initiatives for the kids if they want to get involved. The kids love it. For some of them, this is the first time they have ever been on a boat ride. So they get to go on this boat ride and see beautiful Nassau and then they get to go in the water and touch a dolphin.”
Jordan Prince William fifth grader Gabrielle Jones said she learned a lot about Coastal Awareness.
“I learned that you should always recycle stuff because you might be injuring a lot of innocent animals that really need help,” she said.
Shane Fowler, another fifth grader, said the experience was fun.
“It was fun. I learned a lot of things and I thought it was fun because I got to experience with my friends and my teachers. I learned that you can recycle and reuse a lot of things and not pollute our waters,” he said.
Public and private schools are offered the programme.
For more information email education@dolphinencounters.com or visit www.dolphinencounters.com.
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