THE NATURE EXPLORERS' CLUB - OVERVIEW

The Nature Explorers Club was founded in 2008 by youths living in the housing community of Bethlehem Village and Profits Hills aka "Harvey" Community. The name "Harvey" was derived from the original bauxite processing plant, in 1962 Harvey Aluminum Corporation  owned by Leo Harvey back and is located across the street where the families of the youth participants live.

The youths attended a retreat and conducted a SWOT (Strengths, Weakneses, Opportunities, Threats) within their community and identified the goals, objectives and strategies that they wanted to address. The name for NEC encompasses their belief that their needs and their quality of life hinges on a clean environment and they play a role in insuring that occurs. 

NEC youths at Southgate beach

THE NATURE EXPLORER'S CLUB (NEC) MARINE EXPLORATION & EDUCATION PROJECT (MEEP)

This project was implemented from January 1, 2011 to May 31, 2011 to engage NEC's peer-led group, the Nature Explorers’ Club to engage in monthly information sessions about coral reef environments, the reef ecosystems and their inhabitants, and the importance of the Clean Water Act in preserving this fragile bionetwork. These 2-hour information sessions led by the youth program coordinator and/or BVF’s executive director will feature video demonstrations from the Discovery Network and other video series such as Blue Planet, Planet Earth, See What I Sea, and Life. BVF invited guest presenters from The Nature Conservancy, the St. Croix ENvironmental Association, the East End Marine Park, the St. Croiix Educational Complex Lionfish Awareness project to provide environmental education and resource information to youth participants. 

Sponsored by ReefJam and the VI Resource Conservation & Development Council (VIRCD)