Waking up in Paradise – an exciting Climate Change education awareness theatre production, was staged on Saturday, 24 June, by the St Patrick’s Environmental & Community Tourism Organisation (SPECTO) in collaboration with the Heritage Theatre Company. The performance presented at the Rose Hill Hard Court took the audience to Paradise and unmasked the beauty that lies within and around the parish of St Patrick.
The parish is surrounded by many islands, 3 of which are visible from almost any location: Sugarloaf, Green Island, and Sandy Island. Two beaches, a lake, a pond, turtle watching, and the Piton attract many visitors who view its beauty and experience the live nesting of leatherback turtles on the beach.
This production heightened the awareness and importance of community members to preserve the environment and the endangered leatherback turtle by refraining from killing and selling the turtle and its eggs, as they are all very important to the economy. “Waking up in Paradise” is a demonstration of what SPECTO is doing in response to climate change and is encouraging the community to come on board. From a recent study on climate change, 40% of Grenadians still don’t know what it is, and the Environmental Unit, through a UNDP Integrated Climate Change Adaption Strategies (ICCAS) project, is creating a platform for discussing climate change in rural communities through Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique.
There were approximately 250 people from Rose Hill and surrounding areas at the event. Actors from the Clozier Cultural Group, who staged the first community climate change education awareness play, along with the actors from the North East Farmers Organisation (NEFO) were present. The overarching goal of the play was to make individuals more aware of the concept of climate change and the methods to adapt to it, including the preservation of the leatherback turtle.
It is anticipated that the individuals present at the event would be able to have a better understanding as to what is happening in their community as a result of their actions. They would also be able to make a positive change and difference in their community to reduce the practices they are currently engaged in, in order to adapt to the effects of climate change.
This activity is part of the Climate Change Education Awareness Project that is currently implemented by the Environment Unit of the Ministry of Education Human Resource Development and the Environment on behalf of and with funding from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) under its International Climate Initiative (IKI), to assist Grenada to adapt to climate change.
UNDP – ICCAS Offices, Ministry of Education
