GSE/Vocational Training
Program with District 7020 - Haiti and the CaribbeanOur District 6970 and District 7020 are participating in a GSE/Vocational Training Program. District 6970 is hosting a GSE Team from Haiti with a focus of disease prevention and treatment together with maternal and child health. District 7020 will host our Vocational Training Team (VTT) focusing on Economic and Community Development with a special emphasis on ecotourism.
Ecotourism is responsible travel to fragile, pristine, and sometimes protected
areas that strives to be low impact. It purports to educate the
traveler; provide funds for conservation; directly benefit the
economic development and political empowerment of local communities;
and foster respect for different cultures and for human rights.
Qualified candidates, with at least two years of work experiencei n the area of focus, will have skills sets in outdoor education and leadership, cultural heritage tourism, historic preservation, travel writing, tourism development, nature tourism, recreational/adventure tourism, research, ecological biology.
District 7020 is located in the Caribbean, on two geographical areas, separated by Dominican Republic and Puerto-Rico, and includes 64 rotary clubs in ten different countries or territories :
- on the West side (46 clubs): Bahamas ( Except Grand Bahama), Turks and Caicos, Haiti, Jamaica, Cayman Islands,
- on the East side (18 clubs): U.S. Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, French West Indies ( St-Martin & St-Barthelemy only) and Netherlands Antilles ( Sint-Maarten only).
District 6970’s VTT will visit Turks & Caicos, Bahamas and the U.S. Virgin Islands March 6 - April 9, 2011.
Turks and Caicos Islands have set aside over 33% of its entire land and sea regions for preservation purposes: National Parks, Natures Reserves, Sanctuaries and Protected Areas. The world’s largest bio-diversity wetland reserve – Ramsar – accounts for 1/3 of East Caicos, ½ of Middle Caicos and ¼ of North Caicos. A 1% Conservation Tax has also been levied on all accommodations to provide the funding to maintain and protect these sites. Through the efforts of government and private sector initiatives, various green projects have already been developed.
To protect the near-shore reefs of Providenciales, businesses partnered with the Turks and Caicos Islands' Park Department’s Junior Warden program. Two beach-side areas in Providenciales, locally known as Smith’s and the Bight Reefs, were badly impacted by snorkeling traffic due to their ease of access. Funds were acquired through numerous concerned local donors to install snorkeling trails on each. The trails act to minimize impact by localizing it, steering swimmers through safe passages that harm neither them nor the corals, as well as providing educational and “reef etiquette” information. The trail markers are environmentally sound and unique, using specially constructed Reef Balls for the sign mounts, that provide habitat for fish and surface for corals to grow. Eventually, the mounts will become mini reefs. The signs themselves are cleverly crafted handmade tiles, graphically embedded with words of reef wisdom.
The Islands of The Bahamas offer a diverse variety of eco-tourism activities including historical, cultural, and natural attractions. With a marine territory of about 100,000 square miles, the ocean is as important as the land itself to the environment of the Bahamas. While the land provides a place to live, the sea is a place to play and explore. Many Bahamians receive their livelihood from the sea, through fishing or tourist activities.
In addition to the unparalleled diversity of its marine life, the islands are rich in terrestrial flora and fauna. While the islands of The Bahamas are not lush, their flora is distinctive, colorful, and varied. Perhaps because there's so much to conserve, Bahamians have a strong tradition of appreciating and protecting their environs. As a result, the 12 government-funded national parks of The Bahamas are exceptional. They exist on several islands, encompassing every kind of habitat that the islands possess and ranging in size from the tiny gem of Lucayan National Park to the 20,000-acre National Park on Abaco.
Meet the New Vocational Training Team
The VTT
selection committee interviewed a number of well qualified
applicants to serve as team members and who will represent our
District. It is with great pleasure to announce the following
members of the team:
Team Leader Rich Turnbull of the Coastal St Johns Club. Rich is a private consultant with land and water resources management. He is also the current President of his club.
Team Member Kristee Booth. Kristee lives in Volusia County and works throughout the region. She is a private consultant for FDOT with expertise in public engagement and scenic highways/byways.
Team Member Jackie Hird. Jackie lives and works in St Augustine. She is a professional photographer who likes to participate in re-enactments so her photographs truly tell the story through Jackie’s lens.
Team Member Daniel Smith. Daniel lives in DeLand but works throughout the State of Florida on balancing economic development and wildlife habitat protection.
Follow the team with the their blog. Click here to link to their blog and then bookmark it to follow their progress.
This is a team that will truly build lasting relationships with the community in the Caribbean. Our end goal is to turn those lasting relationships into an opportunity for our District to become more engaged with addressing the needs in the Caribbean. ― Sarah Owen Gledhill, VTT Chair
For More Information:
Sarah Owen Gledhill
[email protected]
tel.
904-347-6490
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