Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
ORANJESTAD, St. Eustatius - "Leave nothing but foot-prints" and "Take nothing but pictures" are phrases often heard in eco-tourism.
A group of Dutch eco-tourists, who visited the Windward Islands last week, do take these rules very serious, but have added as an objective that they want to leave the place they visit in a better state than how they found it. This is taking eco-tourism to the next level!
On St. Maarten the group of eco-tourists could be seen hiking along with heavy garbage bags.... After enjoying a refreshing dive in the Natural Pools; they did not only take pictures, but they were also taking plastic trash that washed upon the shore at Geneva Bay.
This activity, coordinated together with the St. Maarten Nature Foundation, suited the hikers very well since this bay can only be reached on foot.
On Statia the same group of hikers could be seen, two days later, not only leaving their foot-prints, but also leaving the hiking trails in a much better state!
During their visit to Nationaal Park Boven, they were, together with volunteers of STENAPA, clearing the trails. It was a new sight, to see tourists roaming through the park whilst wielding machetes.
On Saba, the keen eco-tourists assisted the Saba Conservation Foundation with their migratory bird-count; after they had enjoyed a guided tour along the "Sandy Cruz" and "All Too Far trails". This weekend the group travelled on to Bonaire, where they will assist in coral-conservation activities.
All these activities are part of a joint initiative by the leading Dutch newspaper: De Volkskrant, and the market-leader in active holidays: SNP Reizen.
These two parties are offering a trip to the BES islands (and St. Maarten) under the title: "Help de Hollandse Jungle". The program not just consists of: hiking, kayaking and snorkeling, but is combined with nature conservation activities.
In the middle of May the next group will arrive, we would like to thank them in advance for their assistance in preserving our nature. Let's HOPE this becomes a trend!
