[LUM#7] Back to Mada
Welcome to Nosy Lava: a biodiversity paradise in the Indian Ocean. But for how much longer? Faced with the threats looming over this small fishing island, six students from Montpellier are taking action.
Poaching, the animal trade, mangrove destruction, and intensive fishing… On the island of Nosy Lava and in Ananalava, a coastal town in northwestern Madagascar, some animal species have already disappeared, such as the iconic dugong; turtles are being slaughtered by poachers, the sea is being overfished, and mangroves are being burned to produce charcoal.
Marine Protected Area
In 2014, the island’s residents reached out to Opti’Pousse Haie, an organization specializing in sustainable local development. A solution was devised: the creation of a marine protected area on the island. In the summer of 2017, six biology and ecology students from Montpellier arrived on Nosy Lava to lay the scientific groundwork for the project, dubbed“Protect Mada’.”
Among them is Florine Hadjadj, 22. The young woman is discovering awholenew reality:“A very poor country, where the top priority is survival: having something to eat at night, feeding the children, and staying healthy. The contrast with our daily lives is enormous… and sometimes our message doesn’t quite get through!” Turtles, a protected species? Not easy to explain in a country where hunting them can be a means of survival…
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The Six Vahazas1 know that the protected area will only be viable if it is supported by the local community. There is only one way forward: to convince them.“The outreach work took a long time. We met with everyone.” Through meetings, discussions, film screenings with Q&A sessions, and even games designed to raise awareness, bonds are patiently being forged with the local population. One by one, the villages involved are signing on to the project. The preliminary proposal for establishing the protected area is complete: it will be submitted by the end of 2017.
For Florine, the adventure lasted four months. It changed her forever.“When I arrived, I was longing for virgin forests. But the real discovery lay elsewhere. It was meeting these extraordinary people: their kindness, their warm curiosity, their joy in welcoming us…”
Today, the young woman is taking a gap year from her studies. And she has only one thing on her mind: returning to Madagascar, even though she doesn’t have only good memories of the place.“I fell ill in the middle of a pneumonic plague outbreak: what a scare! Over there, I got a firsthand look at a reality that had previously eluded me. It put life back into perspective. And helped me discover just how simple happiness can be…”
- European foreigners
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