Belize: Bikes for Caye Caulker’s Ocean Academy students

This blog prides itself on brings you stories and projects from around the world where bicycles create positive social and environmental change. It has been while since we visited Central America. Last time we were there, we looked at the growing popularity of Ciclovía de Los Domingos or Sunday bikeways. We also checked in to meet Mexico City’s first Latin American Bike Mayor, Areli Carreón and heard some reflections from our guest blogger Diana Vallejo on what it is like to be a Colombian non-rider. Today, we are heading to Belize to see how bicycles are helping support local kids not only stay in school, but also generate some income. Enjoy! NG.

Belize is a small Caribbean country in northeastern Central America. It has many beautiful islands and atolls and is a popular tourist destination.

However, life for locals can be difficult. Belize is ranked 166 in the world based on GDP, around other lower-income countries like Lesotho, Suriname and Timor Leste.

Caye Caulker is one of Belize’s beautiful islands. Like many other islands, it has shifted from traditional life to embrace a different way of life in order to survive. Caye Caulker’s now depends on ts hospitality and tourism industry. While tourists enjoy natural environs and leisure activities, life is very different for locals.

Being such a small island, there are limited services. Previously, the Caye did not have a high school. This meant that when local children turned 12, they would have to move to the mainland if they wanted to continue their studies. This is not only financially difficult, but having a young family member away can be stressful and add extra pressure for struggling families, so many would not continue their studies and stay on the Caye. This meant there was a growing population of youths who had not completed their education.

Addressing a Critical Need

This situation is an obvious problem for the young students and families of the remote island of Caye Caulker. In many cases, it is not possible for students to travel to the mainland to receive a quality education.

This barrier leads many by the age of 12, to choose to quit school and join the workforce. Nation-wide, only 40% of secondary-aged youths are enrolled in school.

Opening a local high school – Ocean Academy

The Ocean Academy school opened in 2008 as the very first community high school on the island of Caye Caulker.

There are currently 58 students enrolled in the Academy.

Its programs aim to reduce school dropout rates and reverse the growing unemployment issue by providing hands-on and practical tourism education, in addition to the traditional curriculum.

How Planterra Foundation helped

Planeterra raised donations to fund needed bicycles and other materials for the Ocean Academy to develop a student-led bicycle tour of the island. Planeterra also connected the Ocean Academy to a market, G Adventures travellers, on some of G’s tours that visit the island.

This activity is included into some of G Adventures, and bike rentals are available for all travellers, with proceeds funding educational programs for the students at Ocean Academy.

Impact: Student-led bike tours

This project aims to provide youth on Caye Caulker with training for future employment opportunities. It is a social enterprise in tourism, giving students from Caye Caulker’s Ocean Academy the chance to practice guiding skills while giving traveller’s a unique experience on their visit to Caye Caulker.

Ocean Academy prepares students for careers relevant to island tourism and conservation science. In order to ensure the success for the new program, Planeterra supplied Ocean Academy’s Bike with Purpose program with 40 extra bikes at the beginning of the partnership.

This meant students could show tourists around, gaining valuable leadership, communication, business and tourism skills that can then be taken forward. Costs for the student-led bike tours all go to the students.

This is a wonderful example of how bicycles can be used to help support local education, families and employment opportunities. Key to this approach is integrating and enhancing already established local initiatives (the Academy) as well as addressing a need that has immediate and long-lasting positive impacts for local youths and their families.

Bicycles really do create change!

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Content for this post sourced from Planterra Foundation