The Cause:
Protecting Haiti's coral reefs through “immersion learning."
The severely overfished reefs of Haiti are being overgrown by slimy algae because there are not enough fish to eat the algae. But there is hope because the biodiversity remains high – the imbalance can be cured naturally if the fish are allowed to grow to maturity and reproduce. Reef Check prides itself on implementing economically sustainable and ecologically sound solutions. Areas of the sea need to be set aside where fishing is banned to allow fish to return, grow and reproduce. They in turn will eat the algae and in a few years the coral reefs will return to their former glory. Given the large numbers of Haitian fishermen, incentives will be required to gain their support and participation for setting aside some coral reefs as Marine Managed Areas (MMAs). Fishermen could then also catch more fish outside these areas. But how to gain their support?
The key is the kids. In Haiti, over 95% of the people do not know how to swim, and there is no marine science taught in schools -- therefore they know very little about the underwater world off their coast. By training kids (6 to 16) to swim, snorkel and start to learn basic marine biology, we will start to change how Haitian families talk and think about the ocean. The kids come home and tell their parents about how reefs can repair themselves naturally and reef fish will return. We have done this at La Caleta marine park in neighboring Dominican Republic and the fish came back in 2 years. By getting kids excited about the ocean, we can gain the support of fishermen’s families to better manage this renewable resource resulting in more fish and more jobs.
In a few years, some of these students can enter Reef Check's EcoDiver Program, where we train university students to become citizen scientists so that they can monitor coral reefs, track their health and how that affects the health of their economy and their future. Starting with 600 applicants from Haiti’s top universities the 32 trainees are now PADI certified scuba divers and Reef Check EcoDivers.
Recently, the government declared two new marine parks and already two Reef Check EcoDivers have been hired to help manage them. Other graduates will join the tourism industry and create a more diverse economy that depends on seeing big fish not just eating them. But first we need to teach the kids to swim and get the fishermen on our side... and
we need your help.
What We Need
We seek funds to provide immersion learning for children of fishermen so that we begin now to develop the critically needed community support for two new marine parks that have been declared on paper this year, but are not yet being managed. We invite you to visit our work sites in Haiti and the DR and to meet the student EcoDivers in both countries.
For $5000 we can train 25 kids ages 6 to 16 in a week long training course that covers swimming, snorkeling and basic marine science done in their local language Creole. Until 2013, Haiti was the only country in the Caribbean without a marine park. A well-managed reef can provide up to 15 tons of food fish per year. Help us to save the reefs, educate the kids and create more fish and jobs in Haiti.
Who We Are
Reef Check is an international non-profit organization focused on marine conservation in over 90 countries. Our programs rely on over 10,000 volunteer citizen-scientists around the world – in other words Reef Check is about 99% volunteer driven and empowered.
Our MISSION is to EMPOWER residents of local communities to PROTECT and rehabilitate reef ecosystems along the entire coast of California and in tropical countries worldwide. We do so through grassroots marine EDUCATION, RESEARCH and Conservation.
Other Ways You Can Help
Help get the word out about Haiti by sharing our campaign to your page. Or donate directly to the Reef Check Organization on our website here:http://www.reefcheck.org/
Please support us that we may support Haiti!