Browsing by Subject "Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST)"

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    Endangered Caribbean Sea Turtles: An Educator’s Handbook
    (2005) Harold, Sera
    This project was undertaken as a part of the mission of the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST), which is now housed at the Duke Nicholas School’s Marine Lab. The Handbook is inseparable from its context as a part of the work of this organization. WIDECAST is an international scientific network comprised of volunteer Country Coordinators (mainly sea turtle experts, natural resource professionals, and community-based conservationists), an international Board of Scientific Advisors, and Partner Organizations in more than 30 Caribbean States and territories. Each Coordinator works closely with a national coalition of stakeholders, including biologists, conservationists, resource managers, resource users, policy-makers, educators and others, to ensure that everyone has access to the dialogue, as well as to the unique products and services of the network.
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    SEA TURTLES IN THE CLASSROOM: AN ACTIVITY GUIDE CORRELATED TO SOUTH CAROLINA STATE EDUCATION STANDARDS
    (2007-05) Claiborne, Elizabeth J.
    Many different factors have contributed to the decline of sea turtle populations around the world, but almost all of these factors have one attribute in common—they are humaninduced. Therefore, the majority of conservation plans for sea turtles include a strategy for public education and outreach. From a sea turtle management and conservation standpoint, there are two main goals of public education: the first is to make people aware that they have an impact on the survival of sea turtles, and the second is to provide people with accurate knowledge about sea turtles. Once these two objectives have been met, people can then make informed decisions concerning their behavior towards sea turtles, evaluate and choose among management options, and participate meaningfully in local and national policy discussions. The South Carolina Aquarium’s “Sea Turtle Rescue Program” sponsors outreach activities in support of public education. With an aim to expand these activities to embrace formal curricula designed for elementary school children, I developed a sea turtle activity guide designed to implement the state of South Carolina education standards for children ages 9 to 12. The guide provides students with knowledge of sea turtles, as well as the causal factors in population declines, and seeks to cultivate an informed citizen by communicating information to young people concerning the impact various human behaviors have on sea turtle survival. By gaining this knowledge early in life, the hope is that students will make more environmentally informed decisions about their own behavior(s) as they mature. The activity guide consists of five sections: Introduction to Sea Turtles; Adaptations; Life Cycle; Nesting; and Sea Turtle Rescue and Care. All of the activities were created using a standard lesson plan format. Each activity features a title, focus question, activity synopsis, time frame, key terms, objectives, standards, background, materials, procedures, and assessment. Selected activities were classroom-tested at the aquarium during the summer of 2006. Hard copies of the activity guide will be distributed to the aquarium, to South Carolina educators, and, in partnership with the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST), to Caribbean educators. In addition, an on-line version will be available on both the South Carolina Aquarium’s website and at WIDECAST’s website.
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    Sun, Sand and Sea Turtles: Inspiring Caribbean Youth through Nonformal Education
    (2007-05) Marin, Alicia
    During a 3-month internship on the Caribbean island of Nevis this past summer (2006), I developed a summer camp for local children, “Sun, Sand and Sea Turtles” sponsored and supervised by the Department of Fisheries, a local non-profit organization (Nevis Turtle Group, NTG), and the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST). The camp was initiated as a collaboration between the Four Seasons Resort in Nevis and NTG. The success of the summer camp program became the inspiration for my master’s project. The specific objective of my master’s project was to produce a detailed (and ultimately multilingual, English, Spanish, French) curriculum guide for the “Sun, Sand and Sea Turtles” program, including all necessary resources to successfully implement a week-long summer camp focused on the basic biology, contemporary threats (both man-made and natural), and conservation issues that relate to sea turtles in the Caribbean Sea. “Sun, Sand and Sea Turtles” has been designed as a 15-hour camp organized over five consecutive days and the intended age range is 9-15 years. At the end of the five days, the students receive Course Completion Certificates stating that they have successfully completed the camp and are now Junior Members of a local natural resource agency or conservation group, with whom a partnership had been established by the Instructor beforehand. Upon completion, the Guide will be repatriated to Nevis, where it was conceived, and also distributed throughout the Caribbean region through the efforts of WIDECAST. As a result of educating Nevisian youth, the NTG saw an elevated island-wide interest in sea turtle conservation, including increased participation of local adults in nighttime beach monitoring. With this in mind, I anticipate that “Sun, Sand and Sea Turtles” will enhance sea turtle conservation programs in Nevis, as well as inspire similar efforts throughout the Caribbean region and beyond.