In the Bahamas, the U.S.-based cable television channel Nickelodeon has worked with the government to involve children in protecting the islands’ wetlands and coral reefs. The Big Help is a campaign by Nickelodeon to connect kids to their communities through volunteerism. Big Help projects are hands-on activity in a specific area that give kids an opportunity to devote hours or days to volunteering their time and energy to solving a local, national, or global problem.
Starting in 2001, Nickelodeon teamed up with the Bahamas to educate the public, and particularly the youth, about the underwater environment. This partnership helped to empower youth and communities to reclaim and protect the reefs and wetlands. A colorfully decorated Big Help mobile offered “save the reef” activities at various stops, showing youth how environmental awareness in their hometown affects reefs. Nickelodeon also featured the Bahamas as a partner/sponsor in 10 commercials aired on Nickelodeon promoting the Big Help tour, and Nickelodeon donated computers to
In tandem with the reef activity, the Bahamas developed a local effort focusing on wetlands, drawing connections between the wetlands and the coral reef system. Initially, seven sites (one on each of seven island) were targeted for restoration by schoolchildren. Over the course of several weeks, the schoolchildren on each island helped to restore and preserve wetland areas in their community by:
- physical activities (trash removal, clearances, etc.);
- letter writing campaigns;
- poster design competitions to visually depict their awareness of the importance of preserving wetland areas;
- dramatic and poetic presentations on the restoration and preservation efforts;
- media appearances and interviews to talk about the need for the restoration project and the importance of the community effort to maintain the work;
- sponsorship solicitation of the materials needed for the project (trash bags, gloves, trash bins, etc.); and
- tree-planting exercises.
This effort, which was dubbed the Big Help Bahamas Wetlands Project, encouraged each school to “adopt” an area of the wetland site for planting indigenous trees and shrubs. One of the ten commercials shot in the Bahamas featured a restored wetland, and an entire Nick News segment featured the project.
The wetlands campaign was launched with the Ministers of Tourism, Education, and Agriculture & Fisheries, as well as Nickelodeon. The Government support was important so that the children, their parents, and other adult volunteers could be assured that the project is not being done in isolation, but is a part of a national effort, and which will be able to be maintained with the full support of the Government.
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