Hoping that a little beauty and a lot of brains can help make an environmental impact for us all, Miss Earth Bahamas will team up with The Bahamas National Trust (BNT) to educate our youth on the adverse affects of climate change.

During her reign Miss Daronique Young will advocate for building a Bahamas that is resilient to climate change. Using her title and her charms Daronique aims to help make climate change a more understandable concept for young Bahamians and motivate them to take action.

“The recent devastation in the southern Bahamas due to Hurricane Joaquin was a wake up call for us all,” stated the determined Miss Earth Bahamas. “I asked myself what could I do to help, how can one person make a difference? I remembered reading somewhere that coral reefs and mangroves were natural barriers to storms and in many cases they protected the coastline. As a result, I immediately reached out to the BNT.”

The BNT is a national non-profit organisation striving to conserve and protect the natural resources of The Bahamas through stewardship and education for present and future generations.

“A major threat to Bahamian natural resources is the impact of climate change. From increasing storms, stronger storms, rising sea levels, flooding and ocean acidification, climate change will impact The Bahamas; we are already seeing some of the impact now,” said Eric Carey, BNT Executive Director. “Many of our national parks protect mangrove wetlands and coral reef ecosystems. These natural habitats assist in mitigating climate change but there is action that can be taken by individuals and communities to help deal with changes in our climate - habitat restoration.”

Research shows that a healthy coral reef and mangrove habitat can help disperse wave and wind energy respectively. When hurricane force winds and waves hit a coastline without the protection of mangroves and coral reefs, it erodes the shoreline and storm surges inundate the land.

Science has proven to mitigate, or to help the environment adjust to these storms, we must restore coral reefs and mangroves throughout the nation. Habitat restoration will also benefit fisheries in The Bahamas as mangroves and coral reefs are home to many economically significant marine species.

Proving she is up to the challenge, Miss Earth Bahamas literally dove into this work by cleaning coral nurseries off of southwest New Providence. She also worked with park staff to assess growth rates of mangroves at a restoration site in Bonefish Pond National Park.

As Daronique begins her reign look out for her on the BNT’s social media pages or as she participates in the Miss Earth pageant. To learn more about habitat restoration and volunteer to plant mangroves or corals contact the BNT at science@bnt.bs.

The Bahamas National Trust was created by an Act of Parliament in 1959 to build and manage the national park system of the Bahamas. Possibly the only non-governmental organization in the world charged with such a responsibility the TRUST, as it is commonly known works daily to conserve and protect the natural resources of The Bahamas, through stewardship and education for present and future generations. There are currently 27 National Parks managed by the TRUST with more than 2 million acres of marine and terrestrial areas protected.

Website: http://www.bnt.bs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bahamas-National-Trust/

Beauty and brains join the BNT for climate issues. Pictured is Miss Earth Bahamas, Daronique Young measuring juvenile red mangrove at Bonefish Pond National Park in New Providence.

Miss Earth Bahamas This Year at Wine at Art 2015

Stefan Legend of Airbrush Junkies and Miss Earth Bahamas, Daronique Young During the BNT's Wine & Art Festival (Photos courtesy of BNT for Barefoot Marketing)