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.  

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. 

UN Ocean – Lisbon, Portugal

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The Ocean makes up 98% of The Bahamas. For this reason it should be of the utmost priority to ensure that Bahamians are actively involved in all conversations around Ocean Exploration and the development of the Blue Economy. Capacity building and Education for the sustainable blue economy is a pre-request to ensuring that Bahamians have equitably access to entry points within the emerging Ocean economy. 

The exploitation of Deep Sea Resources is an issue of concern for Caribbean Youth. Deep sea ecosystems are not yet well understood and mining results in the loss of vast amounts of underwater biodiversity. YME Bahamas stands in solidarity with the Jamaica Climate Change Youth Council in expressing our concern  on the matter of deep sea mining and the inconclusive impacts it will have on the marine flora and fauna, life on land, and more complex earth system functions such as the carbon cycle. 

The Bahamas Protected Area Fund is a dedicated partner focused on the conservation of biodiversity in The Bahamas. BPAF graciously included YME with their Delegation to the UN Ocean Conference. Small Island Nations must be strategic in our approach to Ocean Conservation. This requires meaningful and equitable partnerships and the courage to push ourselves beyond our comfort zone in visioning what programme development and financial management gets to look like for Ocean Conservation. 

One of the Action items coming out of the PACJA conference in Rwanda was to better understand Ocean health within the 6 regions of the African Union, where the African Diaspora encompasses the 6th region. With this directive it was a priority for YME Bahamas to attend the African Union side event on Shaping a Sustainable Blue Economy in Africa. YME believes that the Knowledge Economy within the blue economy is the most important area to focus on at this current juncture. Investing in human capital will ensure that the technical expertise exist within The Bahamas to enable Bahamians to be at the vanguard of Ocean  exploration, exploitation, and conservation. 

The conversations driving global policy about the Ocean must include youth and  local community members. To ensure that the Ocean resources are equitably accessibly means that financial resources must be invested in capacity building and ocean management. YME Bahamas has been focused on training Certified Community Marine Scientists as a way of leapfrogging Bahamians into the Ocean Economy.

One of the action items for YME that came out of our participation in the  UN Ocean Conference was  1) Aquire a research vessel that will provide a safe and secure environment for ocean exploration up to the boundaries of our Exclusive Economic Zone. We are dreaming about a catamaran like this that would enable us to offer luxury boutique ocean experiences to  tourists visiting Cat Island and ensure that our Community Scientists have access to the ocean for coral reef monitoring and research, studies about marine mammals and research on elasmobranchs like the Oceanic White Tip Shark. If you are interested in investing with us please contact us today.

The UN Ocean Conference provided excellent opportunities to connect with Ocean partners like One Blue Ocean who use the arts and powerful imagery to sensitise and immerse the wider public, who may not have direct access to the ocean, to the magic of the deep blue. Art and photography are powerful tools to support Ocean conservation and awareness and are tools used by YME to tell our Ocean story.  Partnership comes in all different types of relationships. For Caribbean youth attending the UN Ocean conference there were moments of  celebration when we were able to connect in person.

 One of the challenges for youth from island communities is that we are isolated on our respective islands. This makes opportunities to connect and meet in person challenging. There is immense value in connecting with partners in person as these relationships lay the foundation for future collaboration. YME Bahamas was intentional about  connecting with African youth who are leading marine conservation programmes in the African continent. 

Commitments that YME Bahamas has made in alignment with the UN Ocean Decade is to acquire the seed funding needed to upscale the Ocean Research and Conservation work being conducted by the Cat Island Conservation Institute to ensure that there are pots of funding available to young marine scientists from African and the Caribbean to ensure diversity, equity, and inclusive participation in the co-creation of a sustainable blue economy.