by Caciques Caroline and Izza
Being the first single-gender Casique duo of the semester, and following a strong weeks worth of Cacique involvement in our community, we felt inspired to make the day enjoyable. Throughout the week our Caciques have truly had a positive impact on the community, and helped everyone make it through the 4th week of academics. With this in mind, we really wanted to make this a special day, one worth remembering. Continue reading
by Caciques Gigi and Austin
Unexpectedly, a Tilapia hopped out of the aquaponics tank. Startled, each student stared dumb-founded at the fish flopping feverishly on the floor. Who knew the food we were eating could be that local? Today in Human Ecology, students experienced what it is like to practice permaculture, or permanent agriculture. Each class learned how to gather food from the sustainable programs around campus, specifically the aquaponics program and Island School farm. By utilizing these systems, we were able to enjoy fresh mint tea and savory tilapia filets. Continue reading
In the last week of March, The Island School campus had the honor of hosting cave diver, Brian Kakuk and his team at The Island School and Cape Eleuthera Institute. Brian and his team have been diving caves and blue holes in The Bahamas for more than 20 years and were in South Eleuthera on an expedition. The many Blue Holes in South Eleuthera contain an intact fossil record that is helping the scientists piece together the history of The Bahamas as far back as 4,000 years ago. Continue reading
by Caciques Hannah T and James Cacique Blog
Time stood still as we descended 95 feet to the lively coral beneath us. A group of yellowtail snapper skimmed past our faces, treating us as if we had just become a member of their underwater world. Before we knew it we were surrounded by the busy life of this bright, foreign ecosystem. As I looked up towards the boat above me, the sun melted on the surface of the water, reminding me of the familiar life and experiences occurring up there at that very moment. A rush of adrenaline filled my senses as I thought about midterms coming up next week, the eight-day kayak trip, morning exercise, my art project, and our grades coming out soon. I returned my focus to the area around me and was immediately flooded with an array of sights and emotions. Continue reading
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Congratulations to the Bahamas National Trust and Shelby White in the opening of the Leon Levy Native Plant Preserve, a 25 acre national park in Governor’s Harbour. Members from the Cape Eleuthera Foundation and Cape Eleuthera Island School community joined government officials, international botanists, Bahamian citizens and school children to celebrate the grand opening of the first national park in Eleuthera last week. It is rewarding to witness the creation of a sanctuary in Eleuthera which shares the common goal of sustainability through conservation, education and research. The preserve was created to “continue Leon Levy’s philanthropic legacy and to build on his vision, encouraging and supporting excellence in six broad areas: Understanding the Ancient World; Arts and Humanities; Preservation of Nature and Gardens; Brain Research and Science; Human Rights; and Jewish Culture” (Leon Levy Foundation). Continue reading
Note from the Editor Nick Manning:
Hello to all you readers of the Island School blog. My name is Nick Manning, and as I sit here on my porch, looking out over the sea, feeling the breeze and listening to the waves, I can only imagine how much you wish you were here in my place, and I in yours. As much as I would love to be working in a crowded building, or shuffling though the masses of people who don’t seem to know how to walk at a normal speed or stop and take the time to appreciate their surroundings, I am cursed to quietly enjoy the pleasant Bahamian air, and lay out here in the sun. Anyway, I write to you all because I wanted to let you know about my job for the next few weeks. Continue reading
by Caciques JP Ferro and Sarah Becker
Jumping into the refreshing ocean this morning was a wake up call for JP and Sarah. Right as we hit the water, we both realized that we were swimming in the ocean while our friends back home were sitting in math class getting lectured. Everyone came back to campus from morning exercise to their chores, which range from cleaning boys/girls dorm to feeding the goats on the farm. After an ocean shower and a nutritious breakfast students had classes followed by lunch. Research classes came in the afternoon. JP made clod cards with his lionfish team, which measure the ocean currents. Sarah had a discussion with her Biodiesel research team about upcoming events. Continue reading
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This week in patch reef research we had our first field day on the patch reefs. With visitors from Williams College and the New York Harbor School, we loaded the boat and headed out to patch reefs # 23 and 24. We all expected the patch reefs to be large structures in the ocean, but once Elyssa pointed them out to us, we were surprised to see that they are actually very small. Although they are small, the fish in the patch reefs are abundant. Through visual inspection, we were able to identify many different fish species such as the Nassau grouper (one of our key species!), grey angelfish, and striped parrotfish. Continue reading
by Caciques Caroline S. and Aidan
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David Miller began our Cacique meeting this morning by telling us he thought this was going to be the most important day of the semester, but he didn’t know why and neither did we. However, we soon realized that our time here has been flying. It is time to stop stressing out about homework and start appreciating every moment we have left. Throughout the day we held a positive attitude and tried to encourage others to do the same. For example, during community outreach it can be difficult to maintain enthusiasm during the long hours in the hot sun. Yesterday, however, we made an effort to remain upbeat and energetic throughout the afternoon. The best part of the day was Continue reading
by Caciques Bronte and TJ
Since we were elected to be Caciques on a Sunday, our schedules were very unstructured. This meant we had the freedom to spend the day however we wished. We each decided to do various activities in different locations. Writing a blog about two different people’s experiences would require two different blogs so we decided to blend the stories into one. We came up with a mixture of our two names to create one person and one story. Here is how Bronteejay’s day played out.
I, Bronteejay, arose from my slumber at 8:30am and 8:40am. Half of me wished I had slept longer while the other half was eager to go free-diving. Funny how that works. Being as sleepy as I was, I decided to do homework rather than explore. But, coincidently, being as excited as I was, I decided to go free-diving as well. Half of me wished I was there, while the other half was. Continue reading