Wild Tobago

This week, marine biologist Anjani Ganase reviews the scientific article “Reefs since Columbus” written by ecologist Dr. Jeremy Jackson (1997) highlighting the history of degradation of Caribbean marine ecosystems since the time of Columbus. The significant loss of key marine animals long before the advent of modern monitoring and research on coral reef health, indicates the problem of the shifting baseline and our failure to understand what a truly healthy (or unexploited) coral reef or marine environment might be like. This article was first published in the Tobago Newsday on Thursday, October 27, 2016. Follow Anjani on twitter @AnjGanase “Large vertebrates such as the green turtle, hawksbill turtle, manatee and the extinct Caribbean Monk Seal were decimated by about 1800 in the central and northern Caribbean…” – Dr Jackson 1997. The thrill of sharing a protected reef with these Galapagos Sea Lions, Galapagos. UNESCO World Heritage Marine Site. Ph...

Anjani Ganase, Trinbagonian marine biologist, believes that people and communities are just as important in shaping a place as the natural environment. Occasionally she intends to profile personalities that she considers curators of Tobago’s cultural and natural environment. This week, she invites Lindsay Hall to speak about her Tobago. This feature was published first in the Tobago Newsday on Thursday 20th October 2016   Follow Anjani on twitter: @AnjGanase Tobago is a community of 61,000 persons who - although they share a common environment - still have unique experiences and stories living on this Caribbean island. This week Lindsay Hall tells her story, and relates why she became a yoga instructor and her hopes for change in Tobago’s education system. Lindsay is the daughter of Tony Hall, dramatist, and Mary Hall the Canadian born educator who founded and still teaches and runs the Michael K. Hall Community School in Tobago. M.K. Hall was named for Lind...

Anjani Ganase, Trinbagonian marine biologist, continues her weekly exploration of islands and the ocean. Today, she looks at alternatives in sustainable tourism through conservation and education, and imagines applications for the tremendous diversity of our own Tobago. This feature was first published in the Tobago Newsday on Thursday October 13, 2016 Follow Anjani Ganase on twitter: @AnjGanase Although Tobago has been tied to Trinidad for the past 127 years (since 1889), it is distinctly different in a lot of ways. For one it has built its own reputation as the quintessential tropical Caribbean island. Over the years, more people remember travelling to Tobago on family vacations than to Trinidad. It is considered to be the truer Caribbean island, less altered and more pristine. Even Trinis know this because it is where we go for a holiday. Tobago has a group of dedicated visitors, and we want to preserve this following and maintain these connections. But do we think t...

  Two Trinbagonian marine scientists, Jahson Alemu and Anjani Ganase, both PhD candidates, team up to discuss the impacts of the proposed Sandals development on the Buccoo Reef Marine Park. This article first appeared in the Tobago Newsday on Thursday October 6, 2016. Follow them on twitter: @jahson_alemu and @AnjGanase Nestled in the southern Caribbean is the tiny island paradise of Tobago. This idyllic island offers the best features of a Caribbean get away while retaining its unique identity, unexploited by the pressures of large-scale tourism. Tourism is undoubtedly the mainstay of the island and the result has been steady growth and some investment in the industry over the last two decades. In a competitive tourism industry, the TT government is seeking to up the ante by inviting the Sandals Resort chain to Tobago. Sandals is the one of the recognised tourism brands of the Caribbean. Overview of No Man’s Land, Bon Accord Lagoon and Buccoo Reef ...