Fight plastic pollution in the bay of Cartagena

In the second period of 2024, we continued to advance the activities and goals established in our "Resilient Punta Arena" project. Our focus remained on strengthening the circular economy, community ecotourism, environmental education, and conservation actions in the territory. We identified the need to intervene in a community space and selected the local school as the most urgent and impactful target.

Educational Institution Renovation 

With support from the Travelling Paint Brush organization, the Sunshine Coast Rotary Club of Canada, and volunteer students from COJOWA, we renovated the entire facade and several classrooms of the Tierra Boma Educational Institution in Punta Arena. Volunteers, teachers, and students collaborated in these efforts, achieving significant beautification of the school.

Women's Empowerment and Entrepreneurship 

We continued to support 30 women Eco-Guides and entrepreneurs from Punta Arena through:

- Training workshops

- Digital marketing courses

- Entrepreneurship certification programs

 These courses, provided by the National Learning Service (SENA), offered participants opportunities to learn about new technological trends, social media, and strategies for transforming entrepreneurial ideas into profitable businesses. We extend our gratitude to the SENA instructors for their time and to all the women of Punta Arena who attended for their commitment and dedication.

 University Collaboration and Business Development

Through our alliance with UTADEO, we received support from their students and faculty, who developed economic strategies for the women entrepreneurs. These strategies will help promote their businesses to both local and international communities. Additionally, two women participated in green business fairs organized by the Corporación Autónoma Regional del Canal del Dique (CARDIQUE) and Fundación Fénix Beach, where they sold products, interacted with the public, and networked with other green businesses.

Cultural Preservation and Education

To support island culture, we encouraged reading and creativity by:

- Recovering stories from grandmothers

- Valuing local history and culture

The team behind the "Super Heroica" comic book co-conducted an interactive and artistic activity with students at the Tierra Boma Educational Institution. This experience was greatly enjoyed by the students. We also listened to Mrs. Delia's stories about Punta Arena's past and traditional fishing practices.

Environmental Education and Film Festival

In collaboration with Spanish cooperation, we organized four days of environmental cinema in September. Each wednesday of the month, we screened documentaries and short films from the official selection of the Trees and Seas Film Festival (TSFF) 2024, curated by Plastic Ocean. The event was attended by students and both local and foreign visitors, who expressed appreciation for this highly educational initiative callingb attention to plastic pollution and climate change.

Clean Seas: Guardians of the Ocean Project

As part of our "Clean Seas: Guardians of the Ocean" project, we have conducted 16 cleanup events thus far on beaches, mangrove islets, and pedestrian walkways. With the help of our dedicated volunteers and allies, we prevented 12 tons of solid waste, primarily plastics, from entering the sea.

Fundación Bahía remains committed to combating plastic pollution in the sea. We are grateful for the continued support as we work towards creating a more resilient and environmentally conscious community.

Congratulations to the Fundacion Bahia team for its tenth-year anniversary! Many thanks to all of you who have been a part of this family and who have supported in one way or another our conservation, educational and artistic work! Fundacion Bahía y Ecosistemas de Colombia is a non-profit NGO created in 2014 to conserve and protect the Bay of Cartagena and marine ecosystems, work with its eco-dependent communities, fight against plastic pollution at sea and promote adaptation to climate change. We have prevented more than 297 tons of waste - mostly plastic - from ending up in the sea and the bay of Cartagena; we have organized more than 190 educational workshops to increase environmental awareness; led more than 180 educational clean-ups; and, brought more than 9,300 volunteers on board our educational vessel, the Antares, to learn about the marine ecosystems, impacting more than 47,000 people in total. Our first celebration included swimming, kayaking and paddling from Cartagena to Punta Arena in the island of Tierra Bomba! We swam a total of 3 kms calling attention to plastic pollution, and then celebrated our arrival with the women of Punta Arena!

Yes, 2024  has thus far been the year of women, children and education in Punta Arena. Fundacion Bahia has been working closely with the women of Punta Arena in order to boost their self-confidence, knowledge and entrepreneurial skills! This amazing group of around 15 local women eco guides and entrepreneurs have seen their livelihoods impacted and improved. Thanks to their participation in our activities and in the project, some have increased their income and others are being formed in the art of recycling materials for handiworks. Most of them have been able to provide their services and amazing products through the Foundation’s clean ups and activities and are harnessing the benefits of their hard work. We are thankful for their artistry, dedication and willingness to work with us providing our volunteers and team with local delicacies such as arepas con huevo, typical sweets and natural juices. They are the best!

 Fundacion Bahia’s efforts have also been focused on working closely with the teachers and improving the quality of the education at the local school, by inserting scientific methodology and knowledge within the curriculum. With the help of our leading botanist and biologist, the Fundacion Bahia team has been developing the flora inventory of Punta Arena, also with allies like the Botanical Garden of Cartagena. Sharing this knowledge with local school students (grades 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and 6^th) through theoretical and practical highly interactive workshop sessions has been a highlight of our work this year! Students are now familiar with scientific names, genus and family as well as practical and medicinal uses of local plants within their community and ecosystems. Our motto: Learn and know to better conserve and protect.

The students of Fine Arts from Cartagena are also part of this project and have visited the island interacting with the community and learning about the importance of the native flora. They will be donating some of their watercolors to illustrate the Flora Inventory of Punta Arena!

Last but not least, our educational beach clean ups continue to raise awareness and improve the quality of the waters of the bay and ocean around the community. We participated in a Recyclable dress festival at the school and a truly incredible residue evacuation effort where the entire community and over 15 organizations came together for a major clean-up in celebration of Ocean Day. An extraordinary 8 tons of ordinary residues and 2 tons of recyclable materials were shipped out of the island in the boat of the Colombian Armada. Thanks to all who participated!

Fundacion Bahia has led an additional 10 clean ups this year, 4 clean ups in Punta Arena, 5 in the beaches of Cartagena and one in Isla Chivo, with the participation of over 230 volunteers, thanks to whom an additional 1,789 kilos of mostly plastic residues were avoided to the sea. In total, this year we have recovered 11,089 kilos of residues from our beach clean ups!  Millions of microplastics avoided to the bay of Cartagena!

Thanks for reading and for supporting our work! We dream of clean seas. Thanks for being Guardians of the Ocean!