Turtle Foundation won the Green Project Award in Cape Verde!

The winners of the 1st edition of the GreenProject Awards (GPA) in Cape Verde were officially announced on May 10. The gala to announce the projects that stood out for good environmental practices was taking place in the Grand Hall of the National Assembly.

Dozens of projects participated in this contest of environment friendly practices, which were evaluated by a jury chaired by the General Director of Environment, Moises Borges. According to a note from the Green Project Awards Cape Verde, each of the five categories (Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, Initiatives of Community Mobilization, Natural Resources, New Technology Research and Development, Sustainable Tourism and Agriculture)  had a jury itself, consisting of one coordinator and three persons of recognized intellectual integrity and academic credibility, science and business.

Turtle Foundation Cabo Verde was announced the winner in the category of Natural Resources. The other finalists in this category were the Banco Commercial Atlantico (BCA Garden project) and Vivo Energy Cape Verde (Sustainable Development in Agriculture).

Turtle Foundation collaborators Zé De Aldina Tavares and Ivanilda Duarte receive the Green Project Award in the Grand Hall of the National Assembly of Cape Verde

The Cape Verde GPA is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Planning and GCI – a consultant company specialized in sustainability projects and in mobilizing civil society, businesses and non-governmental organizations for sustainability. The GPA program was launched in 2008 in Portugal and has been internationalized in 2011, first coming to Brazil. In 2013, the initiative was launched in Cape Verde and, by the end of this year, will be extended to Mozambique and Angola.

The Turtle Foundation is very happy to be the winner of this great prize, because it constitutes a symbolic win for turtle conservation in general in Cape Verde.

HAPPY WORLD TURTLE DAY

Turtle Foundation Extra News May 2014

Did you know that today is World Turtle Day? This special day was initiated by the American Tortoise Rescue, an organization dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation, and protection of tortoises and turtles, and announced in 2000 by the Humane Society International, the largest animal welfare organization worldwide. This day should remind us all of the myriad dangers that threaten one of the oldest groups of animal species in the world. The World Turtle Day is thus a good opportunity for us all to think about how we can actively contribute to the protection of the endangered sea turtles.

Every year millions of tons of waste are littered into our oceans, either disposed directly into the seas or floating through our river systems. Sea turtles often mistake plastics as food, and thousands of turtles die annually from plastic intake. Garbage on the beaches poses a major threat to nesting female turtle and hatchlings. Please never leave trash at the beach; never dispose of plastic or other waste into the sea or rivers. If you encounter particularly problematic items such as fishing lines and nets while walking on the beach, please consider taking them with you and disposing of them safely.

Please do NEVER buy any products made from sea turtles. This especially applies to jewelry made of turtle shell and stuffed sea turtles that unfortunately are still offered in many countries despite it being generally illegal there. Primarily hawksbill turtles are used for this purpose, resulting in hawksbills being particularly threatened with extinction. Be careful because some vendors are even pretend to tourists that their turtle shell bracelets and keyring pendants were made from legal materials! Please refrain from buying any turtle products; importing turtle shell products is prohibited in virtually every country, and can also cause a great deal of trouble at airport customs. The indicated turtle shell bracelet was offered for only 35,000 Indonesian rupiahs (about 2.30 € or 3.00 US$) – still no bargain because to make this product highly endangered animal was killed, and substantial fines would await you at customs.

Perhaps you are fortunate enough to spend your holiday at a sea turtle nesting beach. Please look for a hotel that considers the needs of the turtles. Especially critical is the beachfront lighting, which should be minimized as much as possible. Turtles generally hatch at night and find their way to the sea by using light and reflections from the moon and the stars. Unfortunately, they are seriously disoriented by artificial light – they run in the wrong direction and then often die from desiccation or predation. Adult sea turtles, however, are deterred by artificial light from nesting. Local conservation organizations services are happy to provide you with information how you can further help the turtles and how to behave appropriately in order to not to disturb the turtles.

Maybe you are eager to volunteer in a very successful sea turtle conservation project? We still have vacancies for dedicated helpers on Boavista, Cape Verde. Please apply as soon as possible!

Please also consider a donation, which will be used to the full extent for the protection of our sea turtles. Every Euro/Dollar makes a difference!

Donate now!

Thank you very much for your invaluable help, because indeed every day is turtle day!

With best regards,

Dr. Hiltrud Cordes
Project Manager of Turtle Foundation

Turtle Foundation Announces Crowdfunding Partnership with LoveAnimals.org

We are excited to announce a new partnership with the crowdfunding website, LoveAnimals.org and we would love to have your help.

LoveAnimals.org helps organizations like Turtle Foundation raise money for critically needed projects. For a small donation (think $10 or less) you can make a huge difference. Here’s how you can help:

1. Visit: http://www.loveanimals.org/sea-turtle-protection.html and read about our project. We are trying to raise $3000.00 to provide supplies to our beach camps which house our turtle protection volunteers, local school children who attend our education weekend camps, and local ranger trainees.
2. Click the donate button and give as much as you feel comfortable providing
3. Tell your friends. Each project has links to social media like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+
4. Sit back and watch our project get funded and know that you made it happen. Super cool!

Thanks again for all of your support. We really appreciate your help and we thank you for participating in this wonderful new technology with us! 

 

A heartening sign

 

 Former NBA star Yao Ming recently delivered a petition during the opening session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) asking China’s government to ban sales of ivory.  He said, "When the buying stops, the killing can, too"

Thank you, Yao Ming.

 http://www.wildaid.org/program/yao-ming-says-no-ivory-and-rhino-horn

Turtle Foundation at the BOOT Düsseldorf

The Turtle Foundation is present at the BOOT in Düsseldorf (Internationale Bootsaustellung Düsseldorf), the world’s largest fair for boats & water sports. You find us from 18.01.–26.01.2014 at the stand of the VDST (Verband Deutscher Sporttaucher, Association of German Scuba Divers) in hall 3, stand B53/B54. Please visit us and take the opportunity to speak with us about sea turtle conservation, about our volunteer programmes, and to buy one of the remaining tickets for our Turtle Raffle 2014. We are very happy to meet you at the BOOT in Düsseldorf!

PS: If you can’t make it to the BOOT, you can still purchase tickets for the Turtle Raffle online. With many great prices to win, all proceeds go into our turtle conservation projects!