Happy New Year 2010!

I would firstly like to thank all of our volunteers who have participated in our programs this year. Together you have taught over 45,000 hours of English and Art in over ten developing countries around the globe.

For T2T it has been an exciting year with our move to Mexico in order to develop and expand our Latin American programs. We have started programs in Costa Rica along with the opening of our new volunteer program in the beautiful UNESCO World Heritage site of Luang Prabang in Laos.

This year has also been a highly productive one in El Salvador where we have combined forces with El Salvador’s environment minister in order to further develop our turtle conservation program on Meanguera Island. With our new partnerships with programs in Costa Rica and Mexico, we have been able to expand our turtle conservation projects so that we now have turtles hatching all year round.

Looking forward to 2010 we will soon be opening two new programs in Africa, as well as looking into not only providing education for others but also providing education options for our volunteers with extensive Spanish language programs in Costa Rica's capital San Jose and at our Xalapa program in Mexico and Mandarin language programs in China.

Turtle Conservation

Over the last few weeks Renée, our International Program Manager, made a tour around Central America to visit our Costa Rica and El Salvador programs.

She is now back in the office grinning from ear to ear and is raring to go after getting involved with our sea turtle conservation projects. After personally overseeing the turtles hatching, and then witnessing the liberation of them making their way to the sea, she is feeling very passionate about this project!

Sea turtles play a key part in two eco systems that are both critical to themselves as well as to humans, oceans and beaches/dunes. In the oceans, sea turtles, especially green sea turtles, are one of the very few marine creatures that eat the sea grass that grows on the sea bed. Sea grass must be kept short to remain healthy, and beds of healthy sea grass are essential breeding and development areas for many species of fish and other marine life. A decline or loss of sea grass beds would damage these populations, triggering a chain reaction and negatively impact on marine and human life.

Every year, sea turtles lay a countless number of eggs on beaches. Unfortunately, there is a major problem throughout the world, but especially along the coastal nations of Latin America in Mexico, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Costa Rica where poachers steal these eggs to sell to locals who think that by eating turtle eggs they will become more virile. Poachers can sell turtles eggs in El Salvador and Mexico for up to US$5 an egg but by doing so they are risking a minimum of three to five years in prison. An estimated 35,000 turtles are killed every year in Mexico and the same number in Nicaragua.

We at Travel to Teach are trying to help change the machismo mentality of Central America by not only working on the beaches of Meanguera Island in El Salvador, owning a hatchery, having volunteers as well as a local family to protect the eggs from overnight poachers, but by also placing volunteers to work in educating the adults of tomorrow within the local primary schools, teaching them that it isn’t cool to eat the eggs, nor will it give any man (or woman) special ‘powers’. By doing this we hope to drastically reduce the numbers of eggs being stolen.

We have recently held a competition based around drawing and painting turtles where the winner of the competition from the local Primary school on the island won a bicycle, and we also gave out stickers, pencils, and badges which were so kindly donated from the local environment ministry in El Salvador that read 'Yo protejo las Tortugas marinas' (I protect the turtle marinas). Next year we are hoping to have new turtle projects opening not only in Costa Rica but also in Mexico, and to also be able to work more with the environment ministry in El Salvador who are hoping to place Police to guard out hatchery when volunteers are not present.

Isaan Rice Harvest

Last month, volunteers from our Nong Khai project in North East of Thailand took part in a traditional Thai rice harvest. Volunteers from Holland, France, England and the USA took part in the festivities which included harvesting and collecting rice using traditional methods, sampling some of the local food, singing, and some traditional Thai dancing.

The event was organised by the local University as a way to preserve the local Isaan culture and continue the traditions of local village life in the region. In the past, hand harvesting was the only way to harvest rice in Isaan villages. The farmers would do the harvesting themselves along with their families, friends and neighbors. Nowadays harvesting machines have become a great help but this along with urban migration has meant that this ancient tradition has become threatened. The event was a great success and the organisers really appreciated help from our volunteers who weren't afraid to get their hands dirty during their time off and join in the fun!

Volunteer of the Month: Nathanael Andrews

Nathanael, a twenty year old student from Sweden, spent 4 months teaching English on Meanguera Island and in Santa Tecla, El Salvador.

Besides teaching English classes, he also participated in the sea turtle conservation project on Meanguera Island and even though he had to teach during the daytime, he never got tired of walking to the beach several nights a week. Due to his commitment he helped save the lives of many of these endangered species.

Moreover, when Hurricane Ida hit El Salvador, Nathanael travelled to the worst affected areas and help to provide the victims with much-needed donations such as food and water.

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