Joe Darville, director of the fast growing environmental movement Save The Bays, conducted a one-day educational workshop on conservation and the environment for students of Mary, Star of the Sea in Freeport, Grand Bahama.

At the invitation of the Bahamas Hotel Association, the ongoing session series was designed to inform and educate the nation’s youth on the benefits of being good stewards of the environment, highlighting how dependent the country’s main industry, tourism, is on the rich and lush terrestrial and sea landscape. Over the next months, Darville will tour hospitality clubs in public and private schools on New Providence, Grand Bahama and other Family Islands.

“The sessions have been well received,” said Darville, a retired educator who also serves as the Bahamas Waterkeeper. “The students are not only eager to learn about their environment, they also expressed a keen sense of their personal responsibility in caring for and preserving their surroundings, whether on land or in the sea.”

Assisted by Nikie Severe, a member of the Save The Bays Youth Ambassador program, Darville gave the group of young students a tour of the beauty of the land and sea of the islands through the viewing of “Islands of Life”, an award-winning documentary produced by cinematographer and producer Bo Boudart (Beau Monde Productions) and his Bahamian team. The film showcased the diversity of the islands, the pine forests and giant land crabs of Andros, the flamingos in Inagua, the silver bonefish on the sandy banks in Grand Bahama, the Exuma Land & Sea Park as well as the life of the mangroves and the coral reefs.

“These students were among the youngest that we’ve had the opportunity to speak with,” said Darville. “The level of attention they showed and the curiosity shown in the questions they asked were so impressive that the question and answer period could have gone on for hours.

It’s refreshing that we are adding to their awareness and that the students were so engaged.” Principal of Mary Star of the Sea, Robert Nabb and guidance counselor Paytrilee Pinder were presented with copies of “Islands of Life” for use by the Hospitality Class and for the school’s library. Copies of the film will also be provided to schools previously visited by Save The Bays.

Darville has accepted the task of spreading the mission of Save The Bays which is to “impact every child in this nation with the awesome responsibility each has to care for and preserve this very unique land and sea which the great and good creator has entrusted to our stewardship.” Established earlier this year, the organization has formed partnerships with other environmental groups, lending support and strength. Its petition to government calling for an end to unregulated development, passage of an Environmental Protection Act and a Freedom of Information Act among other tenets has garnered nearly 5,000 signatures and it has some 13,000 followers and fans on Facebook. The petition is available at www.savethebays.bs