Published by Development - On 6 August 2010

TIDE summer camp is a 2-week educational funfest for kids and young people between the ages of 8-24 (the participants above the age of 15 are generally facilitators). There were four camps this year, and I was lucky enough to get to participate as staff for the camp in Punta Gorda (PG), as well as briefly in the camp in San Marcos.

Highlights of the camp included the beach clean-up competition and a birding excursion with Elmar Requena

The other camps were held in Monkey River and in Big Falls. This year’s theme was Biodiversity; what it is, why we care about it, and most importantly how we can conserve it. Campers not only learned about different aspects of biodiversity both in the classroom, and in the field, but they also actively participated in conservation activities such as a beach clean-up and environmental sign making to hang around town, and remind their community about the importance of respecting our very precious environment.

Highlights of the camp included the beach clean-up competition, a birding excursion with Elmar Requena TIDE’s terrestrial biologist, water sports days (including some campers’ first tastes of the joys of kayaking), and of course the field trip. The PG camp had the pleasure of going out to Abalone Caye to learn about Port Honduras Marine Reserve from the rangers there, and then getting a quick swim off the island. Campers saw dolphins from the boat, and a ray leapt out of the water in front of them as they were swimming, a highly biologically diverse greeting.