My medical elective with Blue Ventures in Andavadoaka, Madagascar
By Lousie Collingwood, medical elective student, Exeter, United Kingdom Madagascar is an incredible country, full of endemic wildlife and fringed by beautiful coral reefs. However, this wasn’t the only reason I decided to travel there for my medical elective… Blue...
Staff Q&A with Aude Carro, Blue Forests Coordinator (NW Madagascar)
In the nineteenth instalment in our series of Q&As with Blue Ventures staff, we ask Aude Carro, Blue Forests Coordinator (NW Madagascar), some searching questions about science, conservation and superpowers…
How can rice sacks help prevent diarrhoea?
By Mahasoa Lahatse, Health Education and WASH Specialist, Velondriake, Madagascar It makes us, the Safidy community health team of Blue Ventures, happy to share with you this short story about sand-bag latrines. This story takes place in our village of Andavadoaka, where...
Development of a community aquaculture project: going beyond for real sustainability
by Minnie Lanting, ex-Velondriake Programme Coordinator, and Antoine Rougier, Aquaculture Consultant, Madagascar This is Blue Ventures’ approach to promoting sustainable alternative livelihoods through our community-based aquaculture programme. Instead of giving one-off donations or handing out money to local fishers, the...
BV Belize’s conservation Christmas cracker
by Siim Maaten, BV Volunteer, Belize A couple of weeks before Christmas the weh di gwan (agenda) board in Bachalar Chico Dive Camp announced that while others are doing data entry and dives, Santa’s fellow-countrymen Kaisa and neighbour Siim (me)...
Staff Q&A with Fanjavola Rakotozafy, Community Liaison Officer
In the seventeenth instalment in our series of Q&As with Blue Ventures staff, we ask Fanjavola Rakotozafy, community liaison officer for our sustainable fisheries programme, some searching questions about science, conservation and superpowers… What is your professional background? I studied Geography at the University of...
Staff Q&A with Jen Chapman, Conservation Coordinator, Belize
In the fourteenth instalment in our series of Q&As with Blue Ventures staff, we ask Jen Chapman, our Conservation Coordinator in Belize, some searching questions about science, conservation and superpowers… What is your scientific background? Being brought-up by a biologist,...
Mapping resources with the communities in the Bay of Assassins
by Katrina Dewar, Field Scientist, Madagascar This was my first introduction to the lives of the Blue Forests team – finally I got to go on an adventure with them! For a whole week we worked on developing resource use...
Making a splash in Belize
By Jared Katzen, BV Volunteer, Belize 31 August 2013 There’s only a week left of our expedition and I can honestly say that this has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. While many volunteers come to...
Coast-to-coast fisher exchange: from reef octopus to spiny lobster
Lobster fishers from Sainte Luce travelled almost 1,000 kilometres across southern Madagascar to learn from Velondriake’s experience of temporary octopus closures Blue Ventures is working to support some of Madagascar’s most isolated coastal communities to manage their fisheries and marine resources. Starting with a...
A disgusting but fascinating discovery!
By Gizem Poffyn, BV volunteer, Belize Day 1: Yesterday night the stars were beautiful; shining bright in a clear black sky. The sea was calm and the stingrays came very close to the beach to try and catch the crabs....
Nature on your doorstep: adventures on the Belize Barrier Reef
by Saskia Ponce, Centro Escolar México Junior College student, Belize Foreword by Jen Chapman, Belize Country Coordinator Centro Escolar México Junior College (CEMJC) is a Belizean tertiary education institution in the Corozal District. Its mission is to provide opportunities for students from...
“Escape to Madagascar” fundraiser
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Searchin’ for urchin
By Joakim Andersen & Sabina Larsson, BV volunteers, Belize Sabina 12 meters below: Point number 1: Dictyota 20 mm, point number 2: Halimeda 75 mm, point number 3: Dictyota again, 20 mm, … point number 10 – no idea what...
Building reef resilence: my experiences from Zanzibar
by Rado Lebely Botosoamananto, Terrestrial & Fisheries Scientist, Madagascar I was told the first time I travelled outside of Madagascar, that while this may be a first for me, it won’t be the last time I leave; and it must...