{"id":8670,"date":"2017-04-12T16:55:15","date_gmt":"2017-04-12T15:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/?p=8670"},"modified":"2017-12-18T17:32:10","modified_gmt":"2017-12-18T17:32:10","slug":"realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/","title":{"rendered":"Realising our potential: scholars in profile &#8211; Stephan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><i><\/i><b>In coastal communities in the southwest of Madagascar only one in three children go to school, and most do not make it beyond primary level. Our <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/blueventures.org\/conservation\/education\/\"><b>education programme<\/b><\/a><b> has been supporting young people in the Velondriake area for 10 years, and to mark this achievement we\u2019re releasing a series of student profiles. Each profile will share the inspiring story of a student who has benefitted from the financial support of a <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/blueventures.org\/support\/sponsor\/\"><b>Blue Ventures scholarship<\/b><\/a><b>.<\/b><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In February 2016, a still burning stove was left alone for no longer than a few minutes. Within seconds a fire spread, burning down five houses in the centre of Andavadoaka village. The southerly winds were strong that night, making it easy for the fire to jump from one grass hut to the next. The damage would have been worse had it not been for the fast reactions and solidarity of the neighborhood \u2013 children and adults alike, racing down to the sea to fetch bucket after bucket of water to put out the blaze. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, but the loss was huge\u2026 Food, notebooks, clothes blankets, money and homes. From this tragedy we came to know Stephan.<\/span><\/p>\n<div data-carousel-extra='{\"blog_id\":1,\"permalink\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.blueventures.org\\\/en\\\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\\\/\"}' class=\"tiled-gallery type-rectangular\" data-original-width=\"900\"><div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 895px; height: 271px;\"><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 410px; height: 275px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/945a0987-2\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8673\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/945A0987.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,1067\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.8&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 5D Mark III&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1414051417&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;200&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;1600&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.000625&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"945A0987\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/945A0987-536x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/945A0987-725x483.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/945A0987-406x271.jpg\" width=\"406\" height=\"271\" align=\"left\" title=\"945A0987\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 406px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 406\/271;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Andavadoaka Beach | Photo: Gabriel Diamond<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 485px; height: 275px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/stephan-at-school11\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8674\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School11.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,900\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3.3&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;DMC-LX5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1487087605&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;19.2&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;400&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.025&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Stephan at School1(1)\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School11-635x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School11-745x419.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School11-481x271.jpg\" width=\"481\" height=\"271\" align=\"left\" title=\"Stephan at School1(1)\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 481px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 481\/271;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Stephan at school<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stephan has three sisters and two brothers. His mother and father go out fishing every day, and what they can provide for their children depends on what they bring home. When they do not catch anything, the family has nothing to eat. On good days, after saving a few fish for themselves, they are able to sell their fish to a collector in order to buy rice and cooking oil.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"pull-right\">At age 15, Stephan should have been entering his last year of primary school, instead he had no option but to help his parents support the family.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Living day-to-day like this has made it difficult for Stephan\u2019s parents to support their children in school. Through the help of a Blue Ventures scholarship one of his sisters was able to attend school, and Stephan himself had his education funded by a private donor until 2014 when they were no longer able to continue the support. At age 15, Stephan should have been entering his last year of primary school, instead he had no option but to help his parents support the family.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When bad weather prevented Stephan from fishing, he would pass by the primary schoolyard and peer through the fence at his former classmates studying. On occasion, Sister Mary Jeanne, the Directress of the primary school at St. Famille, would approach him.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cSister\u201d, he would tell me, \u201cyou\u2019ll see! I\u2019ll be back next year. I\u2019m going to make enough money to pay for school myself. I\u2019m going to make it all the way through school.\u201d I\u2019ve never seen a young person in circumstances like his so determined to finish his studies.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the summer of 2015, Stephan realized that, despite his best efforts, he would not have saved enough money to be able to return to school in the autumn. He would need to pay school fees for the year, and buy notebooks and pens \u2013 but the majority of the money he was making was still going to help feed himself and his family. His cousins were going north to Maintirano to free dive for sea cucumbers, and Stephan realised that going with them would be his best chance of saving enough money to afford school on his return.<\/span><\/p>\n<div data-carousel-extra='{\"blog_id\":1,\"permalink\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.blueventures.org\\\/en\\\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\\\/\"}' class=\"tiled-gallery type-rectangular\" data-original-width=\"900\"><div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 895px; height: 296px;\"><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 447px; height: 300px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/img_6083-2\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8672\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/IMG_6083-1.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,1067\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;4.5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 70D&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1487801314&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;27&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;100&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.00625&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"IMG_6083\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/IMG_6083-1-535x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/IMG_6083-1-724x483.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/IMG_6083-1-443x296.jpg\" width=\"443\" height=\"296\" align=\"left\" title=\"IMG_6083\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 443px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 443\/296;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Young students in Andavadoaka | Photo: Ben Honey<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 448px; height: 300px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/original\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8676\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/original.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1200,800\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;8&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Garth Cripps&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 60D&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1371374103&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;Garth Cripps&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;10&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;320&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.003125&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"original\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/original-536x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/original-725x483.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/original-444x296.jpg\" width=\"444\" height=\"296\" align=\"left\" title=\"original\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 444px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 444\/296;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Searching for sea cucumbers | Photo: Garth Cripps<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What was supposed to be a couple of months in Maintirano turned into six, and on his return to Andavadoaka in January 2016, the school would not allow him to enter the last grade of primary school halfway through the year. If he wanted to return to school this year he would have to repeat the last grade he was in. Despite this setback, Stephan had no doubts about going back to school, and he started buying the necessary materials\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That was when disaster struck. His house was burnt down in the fire, and the school materials he\u2019d bought and the modest amount of money he\u2019d saved in Maintirano were reduced to ashes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"pull-right\">Stephan no longer had the money to return to school, and was left wondering what he could do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In an act that touched the hearts of everyone in Andavadoaka, the classmates of Stephan\u2019s sister in Saturday School decided to pitch in money to buy notebooks and pens to replace what had been burned. The rest of the community soon followed their lead, donating clothes, cookware, food, and housing materials to aid the families that had been affected by the fire. Despite this kindness, Stephan no longer had the money to return to school, and was left wondering what he could do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thanks to the generous support from all of our individual donors, we were able to provide this very deserving young man with a Blue Ventures scholarship.\u00a0<\/span>He was able to return to Sainte Famille primary school, and within a couple weeks he was near the top of his class after the end of trimester exams.<\/p>\n<div data-carousel-extra='{\"blog_id\":1,\"permalink\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.blueventures.org\\\/en\\\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\\\/\"}' class=\"tiled-gallery type-rectangular\" data-original-width=\"900\"><div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 895px; height: 271px;\"><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 485px; height: 275px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/stephan-at-school2\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8678\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School2.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,900\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;DMC-LX5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1487087528&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;14.9&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;400&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.025&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Stephan at School2\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School2-635x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School2-745x419.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School2-481x271.jpg\" width=\"481\" height=\"271\" align=\"left\" title=\"Stephan at School2\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 481px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 481\/271;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Stephan at school<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 410px; height: 275px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/saturday-activity-stephan-holding-the-picture-second-from-your-right\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8677\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Saturday-Activity-Stephan-holding-the-picture-second-from-your-right.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,1068\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;DMC-LX5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1489234975&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;5.1&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;800&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.0333333333333&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Saturday Activity &#8211; Stephan holding the picture, second from your right\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Saturday-Activity-Stephan-holding-the-picture-second-from-your-right-535x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Saturday-Activity-Stephan-holding-the-picture-second-from-your-right-724x483.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Saturday-Activity-Stephan-holding-the-picture-second-from-your-right-406x271.jpg\" width=\"406\" height=\"271\" align=\"left\" title=\"Saturday Activity - Stephan holding the picture, second from your right\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 406px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 406\/271;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Stephan at Saturday school<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"gallery-row\" style=\"width: 895px; height: 501px;\"><div class=\"gallery-group images-1\" style=\"width: 895px; height: 505px;\"><div class=\"tiled-gallery-item tiled-gallery-item-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/realising-potential-scholars-profile-stephan\/stephan-at-school1\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"8680\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School1.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"1600,900\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;3.3&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;DMC-LX5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1487087566&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;19.2&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;400&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.04&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Stephan at School1\" data-image-description=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School1-635x357.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School1-745x419.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-at-School1-891x501.jpg\" width=\"891\" height=\"501\" align=\"left\" title=\"Stephan at School1\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 891px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 891\/501;\" \/><\/a><div class=\"tiled-gallery-caption\">Stephan at school<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<p>Stephan is now 18 years old. He will be 25 years old by the time he finishes high school, and his sister, despite being three years younger than him, is actually a grade ahead of him. The fact that he is a bit older than his classmates doesn\u2019t bother him at all.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019m in school to learn, to gain knowledge. No one is judging me for my age; it\u2019s not what\u2019s important.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The value that Stephan sees in education is also reflected in his aims for the future. <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI would like to become a teacher, maybe in Ambalorao or Ankilimalinike [nearby inland villages] because kids out there tend not to get a very good education or to leave school early.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A selfless goal from a remarkable person, and we wish him the best of luck in achieving it!<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_8679\" style=\"width: 3471px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-8679\" class=\"wp-image-8679 size-full lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"3461\" height=\"2310\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-97x65.jpg 97w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-535x357.jpg 535w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-724x483.jpg 724w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-1200x801.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-450x300.jpg 450w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-1300x868.jpg 1300w, https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/media\/2017\/04\/Stephan-is-in-the-middle-with-the-yellow-rice-bag-Saturday-Schools-activity-cleaning-wells-300x200.jpg 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 3461px) 100vw, 3461px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 3461px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 3461\/2310;\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-8679\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Stephan (middle with yellow rice bag) and his Saturday School class pose for a photo after a day of cleaning wells in Andavadoaka<\/p><\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<p><b>Donations to Blue Ventures education programme will help to support the hundreds of young people like Stephan, who are fighting for their rights to study in the Velondriake area. An education provides these young people with future livelihood alternatives beyond fishing, and the majority of students wish to use the skills and knowledge they\u2019ve acquired through years of study to give back to the communities that have done so much for them.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Through your donations, we will be able to increase our support, helping students with essential expenses and allowing them to continue their education.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>With a donation of \u00a33 per month or \u00a330 per year, you can <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/blueventures.org\/support\/sponsor\/\"><b>support a middle school student<\/b><\/a><b> for an entire year, allowing them to realise their full potential and advance marine conservation within their communities.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Thank you.<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Stephan Maheny Denis has such a positive outlook on life that you would never guess the hardships he and his family have endured. His story perfectly exemplifies the thirst for knowledge, against all the odds, of many young people in the Velondriake area.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":8678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[169,622,654,43],"tags":[637,489,508,656],"class_list":["post-8670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education","category-madagascar","category-scholars-in-profile","category-velondriake-madagascar","tag-andavadoaka","tag-education-2","tag-school-scholarships","tag-support"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Realising our potential: scholars in profile - Stephan - Blue Ventures - Beyond Conservation blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Stephan Maheny Denis has such a positive outlook on life that you would never guess the hardships he and his family have endured. 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