The Zoo proposes a program of school visits, including the presentation of a specially developed program on the reef and its resources, and an end-of-the-year marine environmental science fair, to achieve this goal. By the end of the project, 30 primary school teachers from all over Belize would have been educated on marine conservation topics by participating in the Zoo?s annual study tour for primary school teachers and Zoo Educators would have made an estimated 60 presentations in 20 schools from 12 coastal communities to 6,000 students and teachers in the two southern most districts; an additional 800 students and teachers from three of our northern coastal communities would have also been impacted upon. Five thousand posters and two thousand bumper stickers would have been printed with marine conservation messages; and distributed to students, teachers and other community members including local tour guides and fishermen. Additionally, with the assistance of local stakeholders, a teaching booklet on marine topics would have been developed, printed, and distributed to teachers. A marine environmental science fair for upper division classes involving the participating schools from Stann Creek and Toledo Districts would have been held, with students creating projects to showcase the significance of this ecosystem, highlighting both its socioeconomic and environmental implications. Students from the winning class would be awarded a field trip to the Sapodilla Cayes Marine Reserve or South Water Caye Marine Reserve to view the Belize Barrier Reef.

This project would begin in June, with the development of the slide presentation and teaching curriculum and the design and printing of the materials. School presentations would begin in September and continue through November. The project would culminate with the marine science environmental fair, which would be held in December.

Community participation would be incorporated into the project at all stages. Input from teachers, school administrators, and Ministry of Education personnel, as well as from local environmental community-based NGOs, would be sought to assist with the development of the curriculum and printed materials. After the school visits begin, feedback will be solicited from both teachers and students after each presentation, with the goal of adjusting the program as needed for maximum efficiency. Finally, the end-of-the-year science fair would be a community effort: we envision students, parents, and teachers all working together on their schools? displays.

Risks to project implementation are minimal, primarily involving delays with receiving printed materials, lack of teachers and/or students? interest in the program, and adverse weather. However, given the Belize Zoo?s lengthy experience with running educational programs, we feel confident we will be able to reduce these risks through careful planning.

Zoo staff will keep detailed records to serve as project indicators, including number of presentations made, number of teachers and students reached, and total amount of materials distributed. Qualitative indicators will be obtained through teachers? written feedback after presentations, and the fair will also assist us in evaluating how well the project met its goals, as the displays will allow us to see firsthand how successful our educational effort was and how much information was passed onto the students and the community.

Environmental education brings people into the process of sustainable development in a meaningful and effective way. When people see and understand the link between protecting a resource, their livelihoods and their children?s future, they become key players in the conservation process.

The Zoo feels a reef education project is highly needed and also very likely to show results. Educating teachers and students ? and through them, their family members who utilize the Belize Barrier Reef ? is a worthwhile endeavor as part of the total effort to preserve the integrity of this World Heritage site. Also, reaching the youngest residents will ensure this program will have long-lasting effects for preservation of the reef, as the children of today will become tomorrow?s leaders. The staff of the Belize Zoo believe we have the experience and proven commitment to providing environmental education to make this project a success, and look forward to continuing our mission of conservation through the raising of environmental awareness in all regions of Belize. This objective falls within the purview of projects that are fundable through COMPACT, as it deals specifically with increasing awareness of the world value of the BBRWHS among coastal communities described within the Belize COMPACT Programme Strategy.

For the implementation of this project, the total cost will be $101,679.00. COMPACT is being asked to contribute $61,309.00, The Belize Zoo will contribute $24,170.00, Peace Corp $15,000.00 and the communities? contribution will amount to $1,200.00.





2. ORGANIZATIONAL BACKGROUND AND CAPACITY

The Belize Zoo is a nineteen-year-old, national, non-governmental, registered organization and a member of the Belize Alliance of Conservation Non-Governmental Organizations (BACONGO). It is governed by a Board of Directors with a membership base of over 500 members, local and international, and is maintained by a permanent workforce of 25 paid staff.

The four primary goals of the Zoo are: to enhance Education, Conservation, Research and Recreation for the people of Belize. Our formal mission statement states ?The Belize Zoo is committed to conservation of Belize?s wildlife and it?s habitats through the establishment of a well maintained zoological facility and education center, both poised to bring about a greater environmental awareness to the people of Belize.? The Zoo is well known as a tourist site for both the general public and international visitors who visit daily. In addition, the Education Department of the Zoo is geared towards programs for both primary and secondary school students that will enhance their knowledge of Belize?s natural environment. To reach those that cannot afford to visit the zoo, the Education staff travels to them in the form of Outreach Environmental Education Programs. These programs recently focused on the Toledo and Stann Creek districts as well as our own neighbors in the village of La Democracia.

An annual budget of BZ$ 1,000,000 attained through donations, grants (which support the educational programs) and visitor admission fees has allowed the zoo to carry on its commitment to the environment. This commitment is verified with the 19 years of experience accumulated from the ongoing programs implemented. In the outreach programs, the conservation message is carried by mascots with emphasis on community participation to enact change. The mascots come in the form of several endangered species, including the manatee, scarlet macaw and yellow-headed parrot, as well as a water drop and most recently, a red-eyed tree frog.

Nationwide competitions have been initiated in the form of annual environmental science fairs for primary school students. Punta Gorda has held three consecutive fairs for the Toledo District and the Zoo has hosted 12 consecutive fairs for the rest of the country. These fairs are used as a litmus indication as to what the students are retaining from the various educational zoo programs. Furthermore, the fairs encourage active student participation toward developing solutions for environmental problems.

To reach upper level students, a unique opportunity is offered to those who are looking to engage in environmental careers through participation in the zoo?s Annual Career Training program. This program has now successfully completed its 12th consecutive year. Currently thirteen schools participate by sending their students to the Zoo for a two-week training course that allows them to work with zookeepers engage in a dialogue on environmental issues and become exposed to various environmental careers. These Educational programs do not stop when school is out! Conservation Camp now in its 9th consecutive year is another program offered by the zoo. The camp reinforces conservation themes and focuses on exercises to teach the students critical thinking.

We also work with teachers during our annual three-day Teacher?s Study Tour, which is in its 9th consecutive year. The goal of each study tour is to educate teachers on current environmental issues and inspire them to bring this information into their school curriculum, ultimately passing it onto their students. The term ?study tour? articulates the method utilize to educate: by using a hands-on approach to experience the various subjects. We hope to enhance learning and complement the traditional presentation of information in schools. Each year we focus on a different, specialized subject, and of course all subjects include a strong conservation message. Past study tour subjects have included watersheds, protected areas, and endangered species, such as the manatee.

In addition to student programs, the zoo has worked closely with the entire communities of La Democracia and Red Bank villages. This work involves the community interaction with the endangered species, the yellow-headed parrot and Scarlet Macaw respectively.

On a yearly basis calendars, bumper stickers, posters and environmental resource materials are produced to further encourage conservation awareness. These visual reinforcements can be seen in virtually every community in Belize. From school visitations alone, the Zoo has over 13,000 students and teachers who receive posters, materials and conservation talks at the zoo each year and we impact upon an additional 6,000 students, teachers and community members through our outreach programs.

3. PROJECT OBJECTIVES AND INTENDED RESULT

Reefs are some of the world?s most diverse ecosystems. They are one of nature?s most spectacular and beautiful creations, home to a dazzling array of marine life ? nearly a million species. Our reef is a part of our environmental heritage and has therefore been used as a valuable resource. We take a number of things from the sea: food, minerals and more recently revenue from tourism. Aside from the right of the reef ecosystem to flourish as an important entity in itself, there are also benefits in maintaining biodiversity for human exploitation. An environment as rich as a reef, which is inhabited by such diverse range of animals and plants, has an enormous gene pool, like a rainforest.

Unlike the easily observed rainforest destruction, damage to reefs is largely hidden beneath the sea and is more difficult to monitor. Natural events, such as storms and predator infestations have some impacts, but human activities, even those carried out far away from the reef, may have serious long-term consequences. There are indications that the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System is beginning an incipient process of deterioration. Silting as a result of dredging and erosion, physical damage from trawling and use of anchors, and over fishing of algae predators are some of the stresses that have been impacting on the system. Others include improper land use and inadequate policies for resource use and conservation. (Belize COMPACT Country Programme Strategy)

Education about and understanding of the local reef environment brings conservation to the level of the ordinary person. To understand that the reef environment is linked to all the environments surrounding it, is to realize that the reef is one part of a web of life that stretches globally, and is directly or indirectly affected by a surprising range of activities and processes. The Belize Zoo seeks to increase awareness of the value and protection of this natural resource through the implementation of a comprehensive environmental education program for primary schools teachers and by implementing an outreach education program in our southern coastal communities; it also wishes to extend the outreach education program to coastal communities in the northern part of the country where our marine resources are impacted upon heavily. Having the longest living reef system in the world and the tourism industry being an important revenue earner for the country with nearly 80% of accommodation along the coast, it is imperative that a program of this nature be undertaken.

Thus our objectives are:
§ To increase awareness of the value and the importance of conserving the BBRWHS through the implementation of an Environmental Education Program in coastal communities of the Toledo, Stann Creek and Corozal districts.
§ To highlight the various factors affecting the Belize Barrier Reef including unsustainable fishing, pollution and coastal development and climate change through the development and distribution of teaching resources thereby providing teachers with the necessary tools needed to ensure that the education process continues even after the completion of the program.
§ To educate teachers from all over Belize on the various factors affecting the Belize Barrier Reef World Heritage Site and show them how to incorporate the information in their regular classes by highlighting the marine turtle species at Teachers? Study Tour 2002
§ To provide students with ?hands on experience? by taking them out on field trips to the Barrier Reef.
§ Liaise with other Environmental Organizations who share the same objectives of educating the stakeholders of our Barrier Reef including TIDE, TASTE and Friends of Nature, making our efforts a collaborative one.