A Blue Heart beats in Avlaki Hope Spot, near Petra-Lesvos. The Blue Heart was created in San Francisco and delivered by students of New Village School to mark the Avlaki Hope Spot, and the start of our partnership for the Blue Heart project together with the local high school of Petra as part of Healing Lesvos’ challenge. Having travelled all the way from Sausalito California (USA), 13 high school students, their school Headmistress, Ms Meinir Davies, and teacher Mr Gabe Cohen, were hosted by Healing Lesvos, in Athens, and Lesvos for under 1 week.
Healing Lesvos is a private initiative started to protect and conserve the ocean(s), and to inspire sustainable development solutions for local communities closely linked to the sea. The Mission Blue Avlaki Hope Spot, championed by Eleni Atsikbasis, as part of her Healing Lesvos Initiative, was chosen for its special abundance of migratory species, significant historical and cultural values, particular economic importance to the community, and because it’s a site with the potential to reverse damage from negative human impacts. The Mission Blue council selected, amongst other reasons, Avlaki Hope Spot, for they believe it is important to have a Hope Spot presence in Lesvos, and Greece overall, due to the presence of extensive coastlines and marine ecosystems that exist side by side with a high volume of commercial, fishing and shipping activities. Furthermore, Avlaki was chosen as it has the potential to signal for peace in the region.
Eleni Atsikbasis, invited New Village School to join her on Lesvos together with Mission Blue for the Avlaki Hope Spot to participate in the educational program, ‘Blue Heart’ project where youth from across the globe come together to establish life-long connections, movement of knowledge and bilateral exchanges together with Mission Blue’s Global Hope Spot network. Together we begin to approach and tackle issues at hand on Lesvos, pick up the pieces, restore and develop ideas that can drive change locally that have global impact through the implementation of our global, Blue Heart educational project.
On Lesvos New Village School were welcomed by the Mayor’s representative Antonis Kelaiditis, and George Filios, founder of Lesvos Ocean Scuba Centre. Our Visitors also spent a brilliant full day interacting with and learning from other youth, dancing and singing, and experiencing the cultural sites on Lesvos with immigrant children housed at Kara Tepe Campus together with coaches from the NGO ‘Movement on the Ground’.
After our Blue Heart expedition on Lesvos, our next stop is Geraldton, Western Australia to pin mark the Houtman Abrolhos Islands Hope Spot with students from both New Village School, SF and Petra High school, Lesvos and the local high school of Geraldton, Western Australia during Curtin University’s West Tech Festival (2018) as part of the ‘Young Innovator’s Competition’.
This is only the beginning of an adventurous journey, and each year more schools will be called to action to join our group of Mission Blue Hope Spot guardians, thus creating more awareness and educating a ‘new spirit’ to protect our planet through voluntary effort.
The New Village School is a vibrant avant-garde independent school located in Sausalito, California, redefining education for children in grades K-12. Twenty percent of the school’s education occurs outside the school. Learning to navigate the world is an attribute the school cultivates and owning the experience is crucial. This mission also supports ocean conservation and the protection of the Hope Spots, by raising awareness on micro-plastics pollution, on fisheries depletion and on the aftermath of human impact and indifference.
New Village school will sponsor 2 students from Lesvos for a 6-week exchange in San Francisco, and together with Healing Lesvos prepare a joint rally for World Oceans Day (global celebration on June 8), to raise awareness against all wounds that threaten our oceans.
Before departing Athens, Greece, New Village School were once again welcomed by Helector S.A.(CEO, Mr Leonidas Bobolas), one of the key sponsors of Healing Lesvos, and our collaborator Mr.George Tentes (Green2Sustain), to an early morning breakfast to mark our partnership and progress for the Blue Heart project together with representatives from the US Embassy (Political Officer Ms Holly Metcalf, and Economic Officer, Mr Brian Hoyt), and the Australian Embassy (Mr Andrea Carlo Biggi) in Greece. Altogether we exchanged views, thoughts and ideas on how we can support each other and implement new ways forward towards a brighter future for our ocean and our environment.
