Action PA5 : Carry out educational interventions in schools
Continuously successful among teachers and students, the educational department will unfortunately have to limit the number of its interventions, suffering from a lack of personnel to support Vincent Oliva in carrying out his mission. Over 7,700 people benefited from the interventions of the nature reserve from January to December 2023. The educational department of the RN conducted 385 interventions in 88 classes – across 19 educational institutions, 1 training center, 2 organizations, and 9 associations – both indoors and on the field: on the Froussards trail, the Embouchure bay, Creole rock, and the beaches of the Lowlands. The next goal will be to set up kayak outings in the mangrove of the Embouchure bay. The significant increase in time dedicated to educational activities compared to 2022 is the result of an anticipated increase in staff promised by the Collectivity of Saint- Martin – a commitment that remains to be fulfilled. To honor the promises made, Vincent Oliva has chosen to work additional hours. However, this exceptional commitment cannot be sustained in 2024 without concrete support from the Collectivity. This additional workload has also affected Vincent Oliva’s availability for his other essential missions within the reserve, particularly in terms of management, enforcement, and scientific research. To facilitate the reservation process, the department is considering developing an online platform, in order to make the coordination of interventions more efficient and to reduce the number of interventions per establishment so that all can benefit from an intervention by the nature reserve.