Three Caribbean islands are receiving a new year’s gift from CIBC FirstCaribbean in the form of support for critical environmental projects.
Through a partnership with Seacology, a non-governmental organization whose sole focus is on preserving island ecosystems, the bank will assist the islands
of Grenada, St Kitts and San Salvador in the Bahamas in preserving their ecosystems and wildlife by protecting critical mangrove forests, nesting beaches of sea turtles and endangered iguanas in the three countries, respectively.
The first cheque was handed over by the executive chairman of CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank and chairman of the bank’s charitable foundation, Michael Mansoor, to the executive director of Seacology, Duane Silverstein during a short ceremony at the bank, when he visited Barbados.
The total grant of US$63 000 over a three-year period will be disbursed in three tranches and will fully fund the environmental programmes and extend some much-needed protection to the Caribbean’s wildlife and people as the projects will be self-sustaining and will involve members of the various island communities.
“CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank is concerned about our customers as well as the sustainability of the island environment in which we live. These projects have the potential of not only sustaining the environment but also the livelihoods of many Caribbean people and we are happy to be a part of it,” Mansoor said.
In explaining the choice of projects, Silverstein said his 20-year-old organization worked with local field representatives in the communities who, along with local community leaders, chose the projects.
“They are the eyes and ears of Seacology” and are the ones who know the local culture, language, environment and needs, he pointed out.
Proper execution
He added that having helped in developing the project proposals, they would ensure the projects were properly executed.
In Grenada, the mangrove area between Woburn and Calivigny Bays contains the largest intact mangrove ecosystem in the country. It is a nesting, roosting and feeding area for many species and was damaged during Hurricane Ivan in 2004.
The project will seek to assist the groups who were already working to restore the mangroves, clean up man-made litter and promote awareness of the importance of the mangrove to both locals and visitors.
The St Kitts project will work with the St Kitts Sea Turtle Monitoring Network to protect the sea turtles and their habitats, including the nesting beaches, focusing on the Leatherback, Hawksbill and Green turtles.
The project in San Salvador will fund an iguana “head starting” facility to protect the endemic San Salvador iguana, of which only 500 remain in the wild.
Silverstein explained: “Seacology seeks projects that respond to the clear and pressing needs of island communities while protecting vulnerable ecosystems containing healthy habitat, often for rare, endemic or endangered species of plants and animals.”
He went on to note that the NGO has 222 projects in 140 islands in areas including the South Pacific and South East Asia but these were the first which California-based Seacology would undertake in the Caribbean.
To date, the organization has worked on preserving coral reefs, rainforest and other imperiled habitats as well as saving turtles and their nesting sites, crocodiles and other endangered animal species.
“We are very thankful to CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank for this generous donation and I look forward to working with the bank closely on these projects,” Silverstein added. (PR)