Nature Seekers: A photo case study on rural enterprise clusters supporting conservation
Nature Seekers is a non-governmental organisation focused on turtle conservation based in Matura, Trinidad and Tobago. It has created a cluster of community enterprises which generate jobs and multiple income streams to support turtle and ecosystem conservation. This photo case study examines Nature Seekers' jewellery and tourism clusters, which contribute to SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG 14 Life Below Water, SDG 15 Life on Land and SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production. Nature Seekers used the Local Green-Blue Enterprise (LGE) Radar; developed and piloted by the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), to examine their clusters in May 2019. Healthy leatherback turtle populations are key to the eco-tourism services offered by Nature Seekers rural Enterprise cluster. The enterprise offers Turtle Watching tours, which gives visitors an up-close experience with "one of the world's oldest pre-historic animals", the Leatherback Sea Turtle. Tours are available nightly during turtle nesting season - March to August. Recognising the unique value of turtle preservation to the entire enterprise cluster, the group only grants access to tour groups who use Nature Seekers' official community guides, whose work alsoincludes protecting nesting sites from poachers, and bottle collection.
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