Out There: See Idyllic Lighthouse Point, South Eleuthera

Beach to party vest dress, multi-combo bikini bottom, and sea-inspired necklace: Dilly Dally, Harbour Island, 333-3109; Beach bubbles bracelet: Blue Seahorse, Governor’s Harbour, 470-2358.

Sustainable Development

Planning, Shaping & Growing

One Eleuthera Foundation

The One Eleuthera Foundation and its’ innovative approach to impacting Eleuthera communities as a non-profit social enterprise has yielded groundbreaking results on island, through a variety of projects and programs, and plans to expand well beyond their South Eleuthera base are ongoing.

Lighthouse Point, which inspired the formation of One Eleuthera, through the development of a sustainable plan for the area and other special heritage and conservation sites on Eleuthera, called ‘A Shared Vision’ in 2010, when a mega-development threatened, has once again become a focal point of their efforts, as Disney Cruise Lines launched a campaign in 2018 to acquire the site for a cruise port development.

Working with local partners the foundation has proposed an alternative to the large foreign investor. “One Eleuthera is working with, and has formed a coalition with the Bahamas National Trust, The Leon Levy Native Plant Preserve and the Leon Levy Foundation,” said Shaun Ingraham, One Eleuthera’s CEO, “and we have got commitment and funding to purchase Lighthouse Point... Our plan creates 106 jobs in the construction phase and 111 permanent jobs, with an annual output of about $4 million - going directly to local people and entrepreneurs… Disney’s plans for the Lighthouse area, may look similar, with the big difference being who owns it, and where the profits are going.”

The coalition is comprised of established Bahamian companies, with no doubt about what has already been invested locally, said Mr. Ingraham. “We’ve been here and working - we didn’t just swoop in for economic gain. We are companies that have people’s interests at heart. The non-profit entity we are forming to own and manage Lighthouse Point - Bahamians will be able to become members, with an opportunity to attend meetings and AGM’s and have a say in what the development looks like.”

“The key focus of One Eleuthera Foundation is really about Bahamian ownership - properties that are culturally or environmentally sensitive,” Mr. Ingraham, added, saying, “If Bahamians cannot own their own land, their own historic sites, can’t educate themselves, feed themselves, then what are we…? The trend in the Bahamas has been a buying up of the coast, and Lighthouse Point is one of the last mass spaces, approximately 900 acres, that can be left for Bahamians, to go and enjoy recreationally, for job opportunities - based on One Eleuthera’s, ‘A Shared Vision’ plan, and for responsible economic development.”

One Eleuthera’s current non-profit social enterprise model, said Mr. Ingraham, “Flips the current leakage in the tourism sector,

Featured model, Ladwana Carey, bathing in the warm waters at Lighthouse Point beach; Multi-colored bikini set: Dilly Dally, Harbour Island, 333-3109

which is approximately 85% - when someone spends a dollar, 85 cents go out, and 15 cents stay in the country. With One Eleuthera, 85% stays in and 15% goes out.” Currently one of the largest employers in South Eleuthera, with approximately 75 employees (45 staff, and 30 ‘learn and earn’ apprentices), the One Eleuthera Foundation said Mr. Ingraham, has only two foreign employees on staff.

“Since we started this campaign ten years ago, I think we have more than proven that we are a good Bahamian enterprise, that deserves the chance. In those ten years, we’ve established a school, a bank, a hotel, supported breast cancer outreach, educated students, developed the Eleuthera Arts and Cultural Center, supported two fire stations/emergency operation centers in South Eleuthera, and much more. Over $25 million have been invested through our programs,” shared Mr. Ingraham.

“We have not done a good job in telling our story,” he added, and indicated that a push to do just that was taking place - with a number of town meetings hosted during August 2018.

The One Eleuthera Foundation continues to expand, revealed Mr. Ingraham. “We have an aggressive new strategic plan, themed, “Igniting the Passion”, which includes an expansion of our Center for Training and Innovation (CTI) to James’ Cistern with Camp Symonette CTI, utilizing the Gary London building there, and we are expanding the credit union to Governor’s Harbour. We are also in conversation with the Harbour Island community to expand the One Eleuthera Foundation model to the North Eleuthera area.

One Eleuthera is also investing in the vendors located outside of the Princess Cays gate, said CEO Ingraham, helping them to diversify and develop their product, as well as assisting with marketing, to expand their clientele to land tourists - visitors and locals driving to South Eleuthera. “They currently see minimal impact from the cruise ships, so we are also speaking with management at Princess Cays.” Support to local schools, an ongoing initiative, will continue, he said, and an expansion of the recycling project, with a stronger presence would take place. Exciting new digital innovations are also on tap for the foundation’s projects.

One Eleuthera’s hotel product, based on sustainable tourism concepts, called The Retreat At CTI, in Rock Sound continues to develop their on-property farm, and future restaurant, with a farmto-table focus. “As a training institute we want to not only train our students how to cook healthily and tastily, but also retrain palates,” explained Mr. Ingraham. The ‘slow food’ movement, where healthy, seasonal, organic food is something to be enjoyed and experienced, as opposed to rushed ‘fast food’ - a concept growing in popularity - is also being explored.

Pictured here are scenes around Lighthouse Point beach at the southernmost end of Eleuthera. The incredibly beautiful pink-sanded strand, and the vast property surrounding the area, now fully accessible to visitors and locals, was targeted as a possible cruise port for a major cruise line in 2018. This proposal was countered by local social enterprise, the One Eleuthera Foundation and its conservation partners with an alternative plan for sustainable development, and continued unfettered access to locals and visitors.

Harbour Island palm t-shirt, multi-combo bikini bottom, and Ipanema slippers: Dilly Dally, Harbour Island, 333-3109.