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Submitted by Magali Combes, L’Asso-Mer
Photos: Margaux LEWANDOWSKI / L’Asso-Mer 2024
Created in 2016 in Martinique in the Lesser Antilles, the NGO L’Asso-Mer aims to raise awareness and educate people about the marine environment, participate in its protection and management, and improve knowledge and monitoring of the marine ecosystems by using citizen science programs.
The NGO runs various educational activities, and in particular, hosts three “Educational Marine Areas”, a full-year program in which a class takes on the role of manager for a small marine area in their town, practicing scientific surveys, identifying conservation stakes and proposing to implement management measures.
In 2021, L’Asso-Mer became coordinator for Reef Check Martinique, which is now comprised of four survey stations, among which is a snorkeling station created in 2023 and named after recognized marine scientist and lifelong educator of local youth, Dr. Romain Ferry. This station, easily accessible but full of marine life, opened the way for the “Ti Moun” program.
To adapt the Reef Check protocol for kids, the team started by simplifying the survey by breaking indicators down to only four categories for each of the protocols (e.g. for substrate: algae, live coral, dead coral, rock/sand). The goal here is for kids to understand the role and importance of the main indicators, and to be able to recognize and count them easily.
The program runs over five sessions: three learning sessions in class, one fieldwork session, and finally a results interpretation and advocacy session. To facilitate this, several educational tools were developed by the team, some of them also proving useful for adults:
– Three underwater videos simulating a survey, with species pointed out for identification
– An 8 m (26 ft) mat presenting a giant view of the substrate, where people have to point and identify features
– Slideshows in parallel with a “Ti Moun” booklet in which each child finds the essential information and has to fill in some activities (with various difficulty levels adapted to grade level)
– The “Ti Moun” datasheet and automated results sheets that aides in the interpretation of results
The first classes testing the program (4th & 5th grade, 8-10 years old, and high schoolers, 14-15 years old) really enjoyed becoming marine scientists of their town. Many of them are not used to looking underwater, and were amazed by the wonders of their local rocky shore. They successfully learned the life cycle of coral, the role of various fishes on the reef, and the methods for evaluating reef health. All of this made them really want to continue exploring the sea and protect their local reef. Objective complete!
For next steps, L’Asso-Mer plans to design dedicated data-entry tablets instead of using waterproof paper. After this successful testing phase, the program will be open to more classes for the 2024-2025 school year.
We thank our Reef Check sponsors, ODE Martinique and DEAL Martinique, as well as our education sponsors, Martinique Marine Park (PNM/OFB) and ODE Martinique.
