Seychelles March Achievement Report

Report TitleRacing to Sustainability

ObjectiveTo reach our quarterly fundraising objectives for the Charitable Trust while simultaneously providing a memorable day for marine conservation volunteers.

SummaryMarine conservation volunteers set their dive kits aside for a day to fundraise for the President's Village Children's Home.

ReportBelieve it or not, volunteering on the marine conservation expedition in the Seychelles is quite a bit of work. Sure, it has a holiday feel to it; you're living on one of the most beautiful islands in the world with daily access to a marine protected area for diving and snorkeling, working alongside likeminded people from all over the world, and spending weekends exploring new places. But work days are busy; besides the much-anticipated 1-2 dives per day that volunteers enjoy, duty groups keep people busy cooking, filling tanks, or helping the skipper on the boat and classroom time involves lessons on everything from marine megafauna to coral species. Early starts mean it's not entirely unusual to see pinks and oranges peeking over the trees as we wake up in the morning. Sure, it's not a tough life, but we stay busy! To mix up our routine and provide the volunteers with a day of (challenging) fun, all to benefit our beloved President's Village Children's Home, we set out to create an epic charity challenge fundraiser, and we succeeded.

The kids from the Home meet us each week for an afternoon of snorkeling and splashing, but on top of the fun that these days provide, we help support them through several fundraisers a year. This fundraiser was developed based on the American TV show the Amazing Race, where contestants race around the world following a series of clues, challenges, and fun experiences. Our mini version didn't involve the $1,000,000 prize that the show boasts of course, but we found that the

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'contestants' were just as eager for the glory, bragging rights, and prize that our race offered. Team members appealed to friends, family, colleagues, etc for donations in support of their efforts to win the Amazing Race. The Race was a combination of physical and mental challenges, everything from boxing glove jousting to Einstein's Riddle and asking locals about Seychellois history and geography. We set out with two goals: to raise GBP 450 for the Home, and to have a fun, competitive day for our four teams of volunteers. Both were achieved; we raised GBP 650 (144% of our goal), which will help finance our soon-to-be-completed solar panel system for one of the boys' dormitories at the Home, providing clean and sustainable energy, while also reducing their electric bills.

One of our Divemaster Interns also seized the opportunity to use the planning of this fundraiser as part of her internship project, and so assisted with all aspects of the preparation and on-site organization of each phase of the Race. These interns spend 24 weeks learning about marine research and becoming professional divers, but taking on a leadership project is another key component. This event provided excellent practical experience in the field of international fundraising!

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