In line with the celebration of the World Environement Day, the ‘Junior Chamber International (JCI) Port Louis’, had organized some activites in Rodrigues from 2nd to 5th June. Namely a cleaning up campaign of water springs in the village of Pompée, an ‘Environment Forum’ held at the ‘Cultural and Leisure Centre’ at Mon Plaisir, as well as planting of trees in varoius villages throughout the island. The ‘Environment Forum’, which theme was : ‘Let’s nurture the nature so that we can have a better future’, has seen the participation of young people, our local political leaders and five panelists, debating about the best ways to protect the local environment. This project is being launched in Rodrigues for the first time.
The impacts of global climate change have already been observed all over the world. Loss of ice in the arctic region, accelerated sea level rise for longer periods and more intense heat waves, amonsg others, are more and more being witnessed. And as responsible young active citizens, the members of JCI Port Louis, which is a non-profit organisation regrouping young professionals aged between 18 to 40 years, have decided to contribute in the fight against climate change for a better future. And the aim of organizing such activites in Rodrigues is to empower the population about the necessity to protect the environment and provide a platform for discussion and exchanges between different stakeholders with regards to issues pertaining to the preservation of the environment, and also other issues related to climate change. They claim having the responsibility to find ways to overcome challenges and find solutions. As such, they want to build a community of changemakers, thus leaving a positive footprint for the future generations. JCI has designed a clear scope of work for Rodrigues. Namely, planting of trees, conducting sensitization programmes with regards to the environment, as well as campaigns on climate change and it’s impacts, conducting projects with regards to the marine environment, teaching the best practices for a sustainable and greener environment, cleaning of water springs, clean up campaigns, recycling of waste materials and so on. To achieve theses goals, JCI has many potential partners, such as ‘Shoals Rodrigues’, ‘The Commission for Environment’, ‘The Mauritus Wildlife Foundation’, ‘Youth Councils and Youth Clubs’, ‘Emtel’, and many others.
The Chief commissioner Serge Clair warmly welcomes all these initiatives and efforts and thinks that this will set the path for the young people of Rodrigues to follow. « I always urge our population to protect mother nature as the ecosystem is the survival of mankind. We have witnessed many people building their houses on agricultural land without a lease and we will not tolerate this. We have to help develop in young children the will to consider the environment issues with due care. They have to build and develop leadership skills. And education is a priority to meet this aim. We have to educate our children and their parents also. This forum gives us the opportunity to think about the protection of our ecosystem and our forests », he stated. « Many challenges are ahead. But with all of us together, we can mitigate the effects of climate change, as the rodriguan has the capacity to adapt. I trust the young generation for the restoration of the ecosystem », he said. He also talked about how, when he was Minister for Rodrigues, he introduced backyard gardening in primary schools.
As for the Commissioner of the Environment Richard Payendee who was one of the panelists, he directly addressed the youth present. « Actions do not start now, as it has started a long time back. Some NGOs like Wildlife or Shoals and others started nature reserves and preservations projects some 25 years ago. Many things have already been done but more are left to be done. And the vision of the regional government to make Rodrigues an ecological island speaks for itself, as this uncludes fight against climate change. In this fight, we work in collaboration with various NGOs. The effects of climate change can be seen in many parts of Rodrigues, even on corals in marine environement, causing massive bleaching of corals. But we have to fight back by adapting ourselves as adaptation is very important. We have a project of massive planting of corals ongoing, restoration of beaches at Grand Bay, Caverne Provert and Petite Butte and planting of native species in different coastal areas in order to prevent erosion » he explained. He also said that climate change affect the whole economy of a country, specially agriculture, as more cyclones occur and are stronger and severe droughts also occur, and the fishing industry is also affected. « This is why we have to plant resistent species which are stronger and can adapt with climate change. We are teaching people about biodiversity and a better knowledge of agricultural engineering. We are combating soil erosion by rehabilitating terraces. And with regards to forestry, we are involved in planting native species only, in conservation projects, and we encourage solar and wind energy », he said, adding that many more schemes have been put in place. He also mentionned the octopus closure season and the banning of plastic bags. He stated that he is confident in the commitment of the youth and is proud of their collective awareness towards this important issue.
