Crazy Turtle Hero

CNN is currently featuring "Heroes" from around the world who are working to improve their communities. The featured hero this week is Suzan Lakhan, a co-founder of Nature Seekers in Trinidad.

Her story is truly inspirational, helping to transform a community from one that regularly ate leatherback turtles into one focused on protection. Nature Seekers now runs community development programs including ecotourism and reforestation, as well as protecting one of the world's most important leatherback nesting beaches. And somehow she manages to find the time to run a wonderful guesthouse in Matura! (see photo).

Nature Seekers is a SEE Turtles partner, check out our Trinidad trips if you want to go and meet her in person!

What Gives You Hope?

Lots of things give me hope, the tastiest has to be chocolate! Especially ethically-traded organic chocolate from great companies like Endangered Species Chocolate. (Full disclosure, ESC was an early donor to SEE Turtles but is no longer currently funding the project).

ESC has launched a wonderful new website called "What Gives You Hope". Do yourself a favor, go this this site and let them know what makes you optimistic and you'll be entered into a monthly contest to have your entry featured and win free chocolate.

-Brad Nahill

SEEturtles.org: INTEGRATING SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION WITH ECOTOURISM IN KENYA

INTEGRATING SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION WITH ECOTOURISM IN KENYA

Funzi Turtle Club members receive ownership documents of a boat donated by IUCN Netherlands as part of a project ‘Integrating sea turtle conservation with ecotourism’. The boat will be used for sea patrols. The turtle conservation club also carries out other activities such as habitat rehabilitation, beach clean-ups, turtle tagging and release, hatchling release program, in-situ nest protection as well as production of handicrafts and souvenirs out of recycled material. This club is one of the 18 community Turtle Conservation Groups (TCGs) that the Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Community (KESCOM) currently works with.