The St. Croix community is invited to enjoy a Coral Conservation Festival on Sunday, hosted by The Nature Conservancy U.S. Virgin Islands Program in collaboration with government agencies and community partners.
The festival will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Coral Innovation Hub, Estate Little Princess on St Croix. It is a free public immersive youth and family experience celebrating community, connection and the protection of St Croix’s natural resources, according to a press release announcing the event.
Visitors to the festival can learn, play, explore and engage with more than 19 exhibitors as they participate in a variety of activities and tours of the Coral Innovation Hub, the release stated.
During the festival, there will be an Unplugging Ceremony to mark the addition of a renewable energy system to help power The Nature Conservancy’s coral restoration facility.
The ceremony takes place at 1 p.m. and will include remarks by dignitaries including Lt. Gov. Tregenza A. Roach; Dr. Rob Brumbaugh, executive director, TNC Caribbean Division; Darren Vanterpool, V.I. regional manager of Banco Popular; Kyle Flemming, director, Virgin Islands Energy Office; and Jessica Ward, TNC Virgin Islands program director.
The ceremony will also include recorded remarks from Jennifer Morris, The Nature Conservancy’s chief executive officer.
“The addition of a solar energy and battery storage system to The Nature Conservancy’s Coral Innovation Hub at Estate Little Princess is remarkable in two ways,” said Brumbaugh. “First, by pairing clean renewable energy with coral restoration, we can lead by example and share what we learn to help others adopt a nature-positive model for reef-restoration facilities worldwide. And second, it is a significant step toward meeting the organization’s global sustainability goal of reducing emissions across TNC’s global operational footprint” he said.
“Thanks to the generous support of our donors, the new solar system is now providing more than 50% of the energy needed to power our Coral Innovation Hub on St Croix,” said Ward. “This reduces our dependence on fossil fuels, lowers operating costs, and allows us to redirect those savings to conservation.”
This work was made possible through funding provided by Popular and Honda, the release stated.
The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, it creates innovative, on-the-ground solutions to the world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together, according to the release.
“We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more resilient,” it said.
The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 83 countries and territories (39 by direct conservation impact and 44 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners.
