ECHO - NEWS
The Echo Clubs in Panama
Problems
and perspectives of the Community Tourism in Panama
Port Mutis: the value of the Self-management
The Echo Clubs has been formed using a strategy elaborated jointly by APRONAD and the Ministry of Educación. The purpose of the Program it is to identify and to organize in each educational center, groups of young, children and girls that are characterized by a high potential of leadership in the environmental field. The Echo Clubs should contribute to the integral formation of their members, at the same time that they promote in young and mature, inside of and outside of the school, a bigger responsibility with the protection of the atmosphere and the collective health.
As first stage, APRONAD has tried to generate a favorable institutional environment to the program. This way, the MEDUC, by means of its Environmental Management, accepted to organize a course of 40 hours of duration, so that 30 educators from the Costa Up of Columbus they were qualified as educators and promoters of the Echo Clubs . These educators received to change a “academic points”, which allows them to improve their professional curriculum. Additionally, since the Costa Up is characterized by a great tourist potential, the Panamanian Institute of Tourism (IPAT) it has provided logistical support and materials. All the Echo Clubs has named Directive, selected Meeting a logo and carried out different activities that include shops, parades, forums and murals with environmental capsules and of promotion of the health. In some schools the handmade recycled of paper began.
In the mark of the celebration of the International Day of Cleanings of Beaches, the Echo Clubs “you Have occupation and you will have benefit”, “Small Environmentalists”, “Dolphins Ambientalits” and those “Environmentalists of Big Island”, they organized a Day of Cleaning of the Beaches in "María Chiquita" and Portobelo. As a result of the day they recovered more than 1.500 pounds of waste.
The most common materials were metal residuals (iron pieces, stoves, zinc, etc.), rubber (tires, etc.), plastic bottles and I glaze, bags and covers of food, cans of drinks, tapas, plastic meetings, cups, plates, clothes/textiles among other objects. They were also some dangerous waste as syringes, conquered medications and others of same danger.
