By Kate Robey | Operations Manager
Dear Supporters,
While we are waiting for additional funding to come in so that we can begin the work at Jalova, I would like to share a success story with you. It is about how we turned one of our other GVI bases into a carbon neutral base.
Curieuse Island
The Curieuse Island Expedition base is home to the GVI Seychelles Terrestrial Expedition. Curieuse Island and its surrounding waters are a national park and have remained free from development over the years. Home to a population of Giant Tortoises as well as the most extensive area of mangrove system remaining within the inner granitic islands, Curieuse is of significant biological importance. Along with neighbouring Praslin Island it is the only place in the world where the Coco de Mer palm can be found. A slow growing palm which produces the largest nut in the world, the Coco de Mer can be found all over the island. Curieuse also has several important nesting beaches for Hawksbill and Green turtles. The endangered Hawksbill is a frequent visitor and during nesting season can be seen dragging itself up local beaches during daylight hours.
The first step that we took in this direction was to install a photovoltaic system at the GVI Curieuse Island base. Since then, the solar panels have been busy turning sunlight into valuable electricity, reducing our need to rely on a generator for power. We also developed a new water catchment system, allowing staff and volunteers to collect rainwater. This is of particular importance as fresh water is extremely limited on the island. The harvested water is used for numerous purposes including watering the organic garden that is starting to take shape.
The Curieuse Island base was our first foray into developing carbon neutral bases and it has been a huge success. We are now using this as a model of how we would like all of our research stations to operate.
With your help, we can get Jalova off the grid completely. Please consider making a donation to help us on our way!
With Gratitude,
The GVI Trust
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