The biodiversity in the Yawri Bay Landscape of Sierra Leone is facing unprecedented challenges from human activities, climate change, and habitat destruction. It is crucial that we take proactive steps to address these challenges and prioritize the conservation of biodiversity for the benefit of our planet and future generations.
GREENLIFE West Africa (GLWA), in partnership with Conservation Society of Sierra Leone (CSSL) with funding from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) through the Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility (BNCFF), is making proactive efforts to address these threats.
On June 14, 2024, a six-day awareness campaign was launched in six project communities (Tombo, Mochail, Shengbull, Ribbimen, and Samu) to reach diverse audiences and inspire them to become stewards of the Yawri Bay Landscape. It is expected that the messages that were transmitted will lead to changes in their attitudes and behavior, and self-empowerment to make informed decisions as they interact with nature.
The awareness-raising sessions targeted key stakeholders including mangroves woodcutters, fishermen, traders, youth, women and children, reaching more than one thousand people across communities within the Yawri Bay Landscape.
GREENLIFE’s 15 trained community monitors were also part of the six-day awareness campaign. These monitors were recruited to support the successful implementation of the BNCFF project in Yawri Bay. Their roles are to serve as guards and conduct routine checks on intact mangrove sites set aside by communities for conservation under the project. In addition, they also monitor the local radio stations to confirm if the jingles are been aired as per the days agreed in the memorandum of understanding with the radio stations. The monitors also have the community’s backing to arrest and report trespassers found cutting mangroves in the designated areas.
During this field trip, our community monitors were further engaged to monitor committees in their communities that are involved in the implementation of the alternative livelihood options provided by the BNCFF project.
The awareness-raising activities were conducted in the local languages widely spoken in the communities such as Creole, Mende, Temne, and Sherbro. The team shared posters with community members and explained their content. The posters depict the importance of mangroves and the need to protect the environment. Additionally, jingles also done in their local languages were played to help them to understand the need to protect their environment.
In every community, participants were given opportunities to give feedback and share their experiences with regard to climate hazards in their communities.
In her contribution, Madam Phebian Henry from the Kent community in the Western Rural Area said, “The best thing to do about climate change is to talk about it. Listening to these jingles and getting these posters explained in our mother tongue makes it easier for us to understand and comprehend.” The majority of the participants across communities shared similar sentiments.
