Photos: BZS Welcomes YCS Participants

May 5, 2022

The Bermuda Zoological Society [BZS] recently invited 6 participants from the Youth Climate Summit, as well as the Youth Climate Initiative Consulting Director – Dr. Rosemarie McMahon, for a morning of planting native trees on Trunk Island, the BZS Living Classroom.

A spokesperson said, “Under the careful guidance of Trevor Rawson, the BZS Trunk Island Project Coordinator, the participants were able to plant 30 native and endemic trees – teaching them the importance of placing trees and shrubs in a newly graded and exposed coastal environment.

“The Youth Climate Summit 2021 [YCS] took place November 22nd – 27th at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute. Attendees of the Summit heard from and directly spoke with local and global experts, leaders, and activists in the fields of Environmental Conservation, Sustainability, and Climate Justice.

“As part of the YCS participants’ learning experience on Saturday, Mr. Rawson led a tour of Trunk Island’s conservation efforts – including the progress that has been made to date with the sites for the new Red and Black mangrove exhibits. The tour continued through the dense Bermuda Palmetto Forest, estimated to be more than 200 years old and a great example of what Bermuda looked like centuries ago.

“For the past 6 years, volunteers and students have been following the guidance of Dr David Wingate to establish Trunk Island as a living classroom, using the Trunk Island Management plan as their guide.

“This plan is part of a larger goal to use Trunk Island as a natural history education outreach site, which will help all visitors to the island understand the vital ecosystems, inspire an appreciation of our natural environment, and encourage future generations to become stewards of the natural world.

“To learn more about the Bermuda Zoological Society or get involved, please email info@bzs.bm.

“The shared mission of BZS and BAMZ is to inspire appreciation and care of island environments, and as the support charity for BAMZ, the BZS is an example of a highly successful non-profit/public partnership. Each year the BZS provide more than 8,000 free educational experiences through our Stempel Foundation BZS Schools Programme in addition to popular community programmes for all ages, development of BAMZ exhibits, and conservation and research programmes. Each year, BZS Volunteers contribute over 10,000 hours of valuable husbandry support to the Aquarium and Zoo with all programmes being accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.”

Youth Climate Summit participants arrive on Trunk Island