Making local ownership of tourism a reality

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In a recent interview with African Business Founder and CEO  of YME Bahamas Nikita Shiel-Rolle expressed that she focused on getting coastal communities involved in scientific research about climate change. She admits that there are barriers to entry since research equipment is costly and out of reach for many locals, but acknowledges the role that donors play in bridging this gap.

She highlights the importance of boosting the economic participation of local coastal communities in tourism – another key pillar in the blue economy besides scientific research. “The level of economic participation, whether it be in scientific research or tourism ventures, is heavily influenced by access to capital,” she explains, noting that this presents a significant barrier for many local communities in both Africa and the Caribbean.

“Tourism is not equitable. This is the dark side of tourism especially when the tourism sector is not owned by the people – and most of the time it is not. It is owned by foreigners who come in and create their vision and employ the locals.”

 

What gives the foreigners an edge over locals? “It’s about access to capital,” she says. “We have a very segregated financial system. In the Bahamas, for example, if you are an American or a foreigner, there is one reality, and if you are a local person there is a different reality. The ecosystem is more enticing and supportive for the foreigner who is coming in.”

 

Read full African Business article by Lennox Yeike here

 

 

The Ocean-Plastic-Climate Nexus

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Just before the UN Ocean Conference  convened in Portugal in June  2022 a team of  European based scientists  released tracking devices into the Ocean to help gain a better understanding of how plastic bottles move in the ocean and their interaction with climate change impacts, wildlife and weather patterns. The bottles deployed had  a special GPS pollution tracking device.The data gathered through this project intends to

provide insight into oceanographic and meteorological factors that influences plastic and it’s interaction with the ocean. Five-hundred-thirty day’s after the device was released into the Ocean it has washed up on the shore of one of our Cat Island beaches. The project team made a Facebook post asking for support in collecting the plastic bottle and our community marine science team has responded to the call. 

Our Community Marine Science team have been observing the abundance of coastal and marine debris on beaches and in the near shore coastal waters of Cat Island. The team have conducted transects at different locations around the island and upon learning about the beach plastic tracker have started planning their expedition to survey the beach where the device has been beached to locate the plastic bottle. 

In an effort to drive collective action towards meaningfully achieving the UN Sustainable Development goals young people from the Caribbean and Africa through a Pan-African movement have set the mid-term goal of supporting youth engage in policy creation around chemical and waste by 2024 and by 2030 have a comprehensive data set on marine & coastal debris in data deficient regions.

Make a donation and together we will co-create a legacy of Ocean Love!

Expedition Part I: A plastic bottle?

The Nexus between the ocean- plastic and Climate has been a key topic discussed during the ongoing COP 28 meetings in Dubai.  Explore this summary of the panel that  discussed the urgent need to address the impact of plastic pollution on the environment, human health, and greenhouse gas emissions.

This session emphasised the importance of multilateral action and innovative solutions in tackling this global issue.

Highlights

  • 🌍 Plastic production is forecasted to increase by 66% to 712 million metric tons by 2040, posing a significant threat to the environment and climate.
  • 🚮 Unilateral and multilateral measures, including bans, incentives, taxation, fines, and rethinking product design, are necessary to reduce plastic pollution.
  • ♻️ The promotion of reuse, refill, and right to repair initiatives are crucial in reducing plastic waste and promoting sustainable practices.
  • 💡 Private sector innovation and investment in alternative materials and recycling infrastructure are essential for addressing the plastic pollution crisis.
  • 🌊 The panel emphasized the need for international cooperation and policy initiatives, similar to the global action taken in addressing ozone-depleting substances in the 1970s.

Follow our Community Science updates on social media (Instagram  LinkedIn Facebook) as we search for the  plastic bottle that washed up on our shores.  

UN Water – New York, USA

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 The Permanent Mission of The  Bahamas under the leadership of H.E. Amb. Stan Smith  hosted a Side Event titled “Sustainable Climate Action and Capacity Building for the Water Crisis” at the UN Water Conference held at the United Nations HQ in NY. The event was co-Sponsored by the Permanent Missions of the Kingdom of Morocco and Tajikistan. In affiliation with UNITAR and UNESCO and in association with the World Youth Group. It was an honour for YME to support in the facilitation of this event. 

Water-insecure communities require integrated and sustainable management systems to address the nexus of water, energy, and food.  The water-energy-food nexus is underpinned by the intersections with biodiversity loss and climate change. This complex convergence must be understood from water’s source to the sea at local, national, regional, and global levels. Data generation, validation, standardisation, and information exchanged across sectors is an important contribution to sustainable integrated water management. 

Innovation is required to 1) identify the specific needs 2) finance the research,  and 3) carry out the implementation of transformational systemic approaches to address the water crisis.

It is critical to support the development of innovations that support the transboundary management of shared water resources to ensure that future generations benefit from this fragile resource- water.  Effective regulatory frameworks that encourage innovation are necessary.

Priority should be placed on investing in Intergenerational capacity building for water education that focuses on critical thinking and scientific results that strengthen knowledge systems. 

Knowledge sharing especially between African and Caribbean countries and their youth is paramount for the transferring of existing innovations and knowledge solutions that can be sustainable scaled. Improving the collective understanding and application of scientific results supports policy-makers, local governments, and water resource operators to achieve the collective goal of water sovereignty.

UNESCO – YOUCAN (Youth Climate Action Network) Members from Morocco and The Bahamas emphasised the importance of grounding business models and development in all water solutions that engage young people.  

 Members from the Bahamas UNESCO -IHP Committee spent time developing a plan for expanding the existing coverage of hydrometric data points throughout The Bahamas. The existing data gaps in our understanding of the water crisis and climate nexus calls for a national commitment to research driven decision making; this will de-risk the decision making process by providing insights that reduce cost and increase the ability to provide equitable access to quality water for all.

When policy makers have the ability to make informed decisions, costs can be reduced. Robust data sets support accountability and transparency at both the policy and implementation levels. Key Recommendations coming out of the UN Water Conference include: 1) The National Meteorological Agency working with the WMO and the National UNESCO IHP Committee should prioritise building capacity for and implement culturally relevant and strategically designed citizen science  and community science programmes that increase the robustness of  existing hydrological data sets.

2) Prioritise research driven decision making by creating National Research Budgets that support the design, collection, streamlining, and aggregation of different data sets that have been collected by different agencies including but not limited to Ministries and Institutions, Utilities and Service Providers, Academia, The Private Sector,and Civil Society. 3) Invest in intergenerational water education that supports the cultivation of an enabling environment for innovative technologies, systems, and programmes to be developed by investing in water and climate solutions business incubators for young people that nurtures start-ups within sectors of artificial intelligence, research, and the production of  business actionable water insights.

 Immediate Actions coming out of the water conference include 1) the convening of a multi stakeholder  National water symposium hosted in The Bahamas to co-create the research questions that will drive the water -climate researched being led by our CICI research team 2) Strengthening the relationship between The Bahamas and The Gambia in the co-creation of  water-ocean solutions. 

Gender is my Agenda Campaign – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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The Gender is My Agenda pre  meetings to the African Union Summit and the UN CSW meetings highlighted that women are an untapped resources that can be an economic growth accelerator throughout Africa. Women are often in unpaid work positions where their full potential have not been harnesses due to challenges in trade, restrictions on land property rights, barriers to accessing finances with limited products and resources. Women are often faced with harassment and gender based violence in the work place. 

The conference emphasised the import role that the AfCFTA can play as a catalyst for the digital transformation as a driver to inter-africa trade as e-commerse has tremendous potential too increase financial inclusion. Women’s economic empowerment is important for gender equity and achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. There is a need for integrated and collaborative approaches for the integration of women traders. 

The youth must use their skills to support their elders in accessing digital spaces, there is tremendous opportunity for financial growth for youth and rural older women if we work together. Other issues that need to be address are the freedom and safety of movement throughout the content and across existing boarders. A recurring conversation was the reminder of ” Who created the African borders? We are not able to access different countries because we need visas to travel throughout my own motherland. We must break those barriers. We must education ourselves with the polices and harmonise the quality assurances and standards. “

Other conversations reminded us that ” we cannot talk about the barriers and things like education and health if women’s bodies are not their own and treated as needing specific attention and health polices. – ” You can’t pay attention to one and not pay attention to the other.”

The GIMAC Founder reminded the audience to “Claim yourself your space. We need to write our stories. We must be with the women who are suffering. We need to support South Sudan and all the women who are in conflict. We need to be together. We don’t divide. We are one” – GIMAC Founder

Members of our YME Ethiopia family attend the meeting. One of the outcomes from this meeting was the establishment of the YME Bahamas Women in Leadership Fellowship currently awarded to Melat Yohannas ( last on the right). Melat is working closely with the YME Bahamas CEO to embolden the role that YME plays at the intersection of women, youth, sustainable development, and financial inclusion. 

Internet Governance Forum – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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The Internet Governance Forum was an important meeting for YME to be an observer at. Access to the internet and technology is at the heart of building capacity and supporting sustainable development. While the internet is a powerful tool there are also huge threats that is important for us to take into consideration. Topics highlighted during the conference include the challenges that Women and Children experience as it relates to bullying and sexual harassment. 

A youth representative from Trinidad and Tobago advocated for the importance for SIDS and the needs of SIDS to be at the heart of the solutions coming out of the 17th Annual Internet Governance Forum. SIDS by our nature our challenged with connectivity because of our island nature. The internet helps to support meaning engagement and participation with young people however there are major gaps that need to be addressed. 

Priorities for YME that were inspired by our participation in the IGF include increasing access to the highest quality technology and internet services for members in our Africa-Caribbean Climate Action Network. To be at the vanguard of innovation we must be equipped with the best tools. To play your part in the co-creation of climate solutions by improving access to technology and to internet to young people and local communiteis please contact us today. 

Climate Diplomacy Mission: UNFCCC COP 27 Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya

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At COP 26 The Glasgow Declaration was signed which recongnised the urgent need for Climate Action in Tourism. Tarran Simms, Sustainability Tourism Expert and member of the YME Bahamas team and Bahamian Delegation shared the lessons learned from community based tourism programmes he has led and designed in Andros and other Islands of The Bahamas during his time with the Ministry of Tourism. Heritage and community based sustainable tourism are niche sectors of particular intrust to YME Bahamas as it is a mechanisms to expand learning opportunities and economic opportunities for our local communities. 

Our team made a visit to the United Nations in Addis Ababa where the power of education, capacity building and peace  as foundational pillars to equitable sustainable tourism was discussed at length with various partners. Special emphasis was placed on the importance of Woman and Youth in leadership positions to drive the sustainable change. The team then traveled on the the UNESCO world Heritage Site and oldest Swahili Community in Africa, Lamu Kenya where they met with local business owners and tourism operators. 

The YME Residence and co-working space in Sharm-El – Sheikh Egypt provided refuge and an inspiring atmosphere for the co-creation of climate solutions. Young people from Uganda, Nigeria, Namibia, and the Caribbean islands of Anguilla and The Bahamas worked together over the 3 weeks of climate meetings to maximise their collective presence at COP 27 and to design action plans towards the upcoming COP 28 meetings.

Africa’s Roadmap to Adaptation through Agroecology – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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With COP 27 closely approaching it was necessary for the YME team to gain clarity on our priorities while attending COP 27. The Agroecology meeting in Addis Ababa helped to emphasis the importance of understanding the diversity of climate solutions being proposed around the world and to remember that although the methodology that we implant to ensure healthy and quality access to food for all may be different the core principles remain the same. Key barriers to climate solutions aired during the conference included the

high debt risk perception of young people, women, and local community members. In order for sustainable financing to be accessible people who generally fall into the high debt risk category need to be de-risked. This conference also helped to provide perspective on the different stages of healing that many African countries are in as we are collectively immersing from our shared colonial history. The Caribbean and many African countries share a deep historical wound that has challenged what sustainable development has looked like. 

An important point that was highlighted during the conference was the important and dominant  role of women in the Agriculture sector and the importance of local and indigenous knowledge systems in supporting agricultural sciences and our large scale approaches to climate solutions. 

Africa Continental Free Trade Area – Dar -Es- Selam , Tanzania

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YME was invited to The Cluster Meeting for the The Women and Youth Financial and Economic Inclusion (WYFEI)  initiative a conversation that took place during the AfCFTA conference ” Women and Youth: The engine of AfCFTA Trade in Africa”.  at which aims to unlock key systemic bottlenecks that perpetuate poverty, deprivation, and social injustice among women and youth in Africa. The goal was to create a workplan that supports, harmonizes, and facilitates the implementation of women and youth financial and economic inclusion initiatives and programmes across the continent.

This meeting presented another opportunities for members of the Africa-Caribbean Climate Action Network to continue conversations that started in Rwanda. Of top priority for YME was to understand where there were opportunities within the wider AfCFTA conversation for YME to develop or co-design sustianable financial models that would help to ensure a steady cashflow for the operational costs of our organisation and collective climate action.

The power packed opening session of the AfCFTA Conference on Youth and Women started with a  High level delegation of the President of Tanzania, President of Ethiopia, Vice Chair of the AU, Vice President of Liberia, Vice President of Uganda, former President of Malawi and Former President of Mauritius all of which were women. It was during this meeting that the concept of Ocean Love Coffee was nurtured by business leaders from Southern Africa.

The most powerful takeaway from this conference was inspired by a statement made by one of the high level speakers who expressed her disappointment at the fact that she had to speak English to inform us that she would not be speaking English on the panel and that it was time for Africa to learn Swahili. We received the message and invite you to learn Kiswahili with us at the next Grouper School Party. 

UN Caribbean Partnership Meeting – Nassau, The Bahamas

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The Caribbean and the world have committed to achieving the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These goals are a structured way of helping us to understand the different challenges that exist in our world and provide a pathway of working towards creating solutions. Ultimately we want a world where the quality of life experience is high for all.  The Bahamas has a population of about 400,000 people and cxollectilvy as the  Caribbean region there are just above 44,000,000.  There is immense power between us should we collectively choose to use it. 

During the partnership meeting we discussed different types of partnerships. These conversations helped our YME team reflect on the type of equitable partnerships we want to be part of co-creating. Key take aways from this meeting included  the importance of communication. A partnership is a long term relationship especially when we live on tiny islands. Developing effective tools of communicating with partners, expressing needs, receiving constructive feedback, offering support and sitting with and working through the sometimes uncomfortableness of conflict are important skills to develop.

The absence of sustainable cashflow can create complications in achieving our sustainable development goals. Learning to see ourselves as part of a larger community is critical to ensuring that we can design programmes and projects that are inclusive to all partners throughout the different sectors of society.   Data generation,  access, and sharing are components of sustainable development that we must prioritise. Ensuring that organisational partners have the capacity to share the success and challenges of their work is at the bedrock of being able to build resilient communities. 

The private sector and civil society must be able to work hand in hand with our governments as we build a resilient Caribbean region. Recommendations to improve the quality of partnership throughout the region would be to fund a large scale 3 year minimum capacity building grant designed specifically to work with Caribbean civil society to build out revenue generating financial and strategic plans for the respective organisations. 

Ensuring that a critical mass of local organisations throughout the region have robust internal systems that support a healthy ecosystem for partnership should be our regional priority. This is in direct alignment with SDG 16 – Peace Justice and Strong Institutions  and SDG 17- Partnership for the goals.  The strength of our civil society and our ability to work in tandem with the private sector is essential for a shared peaceful future. 

Strengthening the civil society sector throughout the Caribbean must be our collective priority. YME was thrilled to participate in this workshop and we are in deep reflection on how we can improve as a partner and build greater relationships with other organisations beyond our current organisational comfort zone. 

Caribbean Climate RCOY – Nassau, The Bahamas

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After attending COP 26 The Government of The Bahamas pledged their commitment to invest in the development of youth capacity for climate solutions. In alignment with their pledge The Government partnered with YME Bahamas in hosting  the first YOUNGO Caribbean Regional Conference of Youth for Climate Change. This meeting convened at the University of The Bahamas engaged youth from The Bahamas, throughout the Caribbean with a strong virtual representation from the Africa-Caribbean Climate Action Network. 

Young people from different communities gathered to learn, create, write and connect. Outcomes from the RCOY include 1) Policy recomendations and Vision for future climate Action within  the Caribbean and  Africa 2) The establishment of a youth NDC task force to review and provide guidance on the Bahamas’ commitments 3) Foundational development of solutions for SDG 6 Quality Water and Sanitation in partnership with Bahamas  UNESCO-IHP Committee