Visitors flock to peek at neigbourhood nature
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I didn’t know you were doing things that are so interesting and useful” a typical statement from a high powered business man visiting the Heritage Garden at Roche Caiman, someone who is used to thinking about conservation as esoteric and not relevant to everyday life. From conservation to food security - the seemingly surprising turns that Nature Seychelles makes in its relentless quest to make environmental management socially relevant in the 21st Century have continued to grab the attention of the Seychellois public. Projects meant to make environmental conservation easily accessible and personally useful to people include the fascinating Heritage Garden and the new generation reserve, the Sanctuary at Roche Caiman. Widely covered by the media, these projects have attracted many segments of society to the peri-urban neighborhood of Roche Caiman The Heritage Garden has hosted high powered teams from various organizations in Seychelles including the National Assembly, the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB), the telecommunication company Airtel, and Creole Travel. First were the National Assembly Secretariat led by the Clerk to the National Assembly, the dynamic Marie Nella Azemia, who is also a veteran of NGO work in Seychelles. The young staffers were fascinated by plants, which they knew only by reputation from parents and grandparents. Blaisila Hoffmann from STB led the marketing team of this important organization to the Sanctuary at Roche Caiman, the Centre for Environmental Education (CEE) and was wrapped up by a visit to the award winning Heritage Garden where the tourism professionals pondered on the exciting ecotourism potential of these sites. Visitors not only mingle freely with the ‘Eco Warriors” of Nature Seychelles such as Terence Vel, Nature Seychelles’ award winning conservation educator and Lucina Denis our
Hon. Waven William and IAC of the National Assembly at the Garden
16 Zwazo late 2008 - early 2009
horticulturist who is fluent in Italian and likes to welcome visitors from that country, but also have an opportunity to view the rich wares of nature such as various medicinal and aromatic plants, fruits, spices and herbs . “We want conservation to be relevant to people. The Garden not only captures the attention of the man on the street who may be inattentive to conservation messages but also provides a practical demonstration of what I call edible landscaping (see overleaf) and the art of eco-gardening. If people establish such gardens in their back yards, in school grounds even around buildings, they can stop “and smell the roses” so to speak – a form of nature communing and eco-healing in a society where, surprisingly, many youngsters are already suffering from nature deficit.” Shah reveled in his welcoming speech to the International Affairs Committee (IAC) of the National Assembly recently. The IAC led by its Chairman the Honorable Waven William wanted to see more efforts like this spread all over the country and continue to .provide much welcomed advice and moral support to Nature Seychelles work. “The most excited visitors continue to be the students from the National Institute of Education, primary and secondary schools who throng here. The Heritage Garden was of course established with an intention of acting as a demonstration for other similar Gardens which have been established in schools all over Seychelles and also as a research facility for students” says Terrence Vel. It boasts of a variety of plant species namely Bwa torti (Morinda citrifolia), Bwa sousori, Roz Ammer, Saponer Blah, Confitir papaya, Nougat Bannan, Beignet bannan, Tart bannan, Saponer blan, among others. The Heritage Garden Project has won many admirers. It was cited by the Commonwealth for “preserving and maintaining an important part of Seychelles culture and traditions that is in danger of being lost, the Project is of benefit to local communities. It adds value to the communities and their local resources by promoting understanding of the value of the plants that are around us, that fosters care of the local environment and a sustainable attitude to the use and continued existence of plant diversity.” “I believe the Heritage Garden have inspired many people to take up what we are calling edible landscaping and to plant medicinal and edible plants rather than only decorative ones that could also be invasive. This is the feedback I have been getting from visitors. I am always amazed at the number of people from all walks of life who come to see us here. We are working at making it a fully fledged herbarium in the not so distant future.” said Lucina Denis, the resident horticulturist. The satisfied look of the visitors after tours are obvious as most take pictures, to keep the memories precious and sip Citronnele tea (which thrives well at the Heritage Garden) with satisfied glee.