Report on St Thomas Outreach Activities of the GOJ/EU/UNEP Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction Project June 14 & 29, 2012

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1 1 Report on St Thomas Outreach Activities of the GOJ/EU/UNEP Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction Project June 14 & 29, 2012 St Thomas outreach activities under the GOJ/EU/UNEP Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction Project communication and public education campaign (Result Area Three) took place on June 14 and June 29, The outreach activities were implemented in close collaboration with the St Thomas parish council, Panos Caribbean, the National Environment Education Committee, the Voices for Climate Change Education project and the National Environment and Planning Agency and in consultation with the Forestry Department. The objectives of the outreach activities were: 1. To increase engagement of target groups in exchanges of information and ideas regarding climate change, its impact at the individual, community and national levels in Jamaica and on possible adaptation measures that can be undertaken at these levels; 2. To increase the availability of accurate and culturally relevant information and communication resources on climate change, its impact and adaptation, to wide cross sections of the Jamaican population The activities undertaken were: A presentation on Climate Change to the parish council at their regular monthly meeting on June 14 An edutainment event involving community theatre and a music concert featuring the Voices for Climate Change Education artistes at the Rudolph Elder Park, Morant Bay, on June 29 Promotion of climate change adaptation issues and the St Thomas edutainment event at the RADA St Thomas Open Day on June 29 by the NEPA outreach and public education team Press and Publicity Activities-to raise awareness about the St Thomas outreach activities, climate change, its impacts and the need to adapt and the work of the GOJ/EU/UNEP CCADRRP and the Voices Project The CCADRRP team in St Thomas on June 29 consisted of Mr Delroy Tomlinson of the Meteorological Service, Gail Hoad and Chantalla Griffiths from the project unit and Mr. Errol Campbell, driver from the Meteorological Service. The outreach team included representatives from NEPA s outreach and public education team, Panos, the National Environment Education Committee and the Voices for Climate Change Education project. A representative of the Forestry Department attended the parish council meeting on June 14. Results: - Presentation on Climate Change to the St Thomas Parish Council on June 14 A presentation on climate change, tailored to include information relevant to the parish of St Thomas, was developed by the Meteorological Service. Due to an emergency, the officer assigned to

2 2 deliver the presentation on June 14 was unable to make it to the meeting and the presentation was therefore made by the communication specialist. All councillors and the mayor were in attendance at the meeting and information was provided about the public education activity that was planned for the parish on June 29. A representative of the Forestry Department attended the meeting. The communication manager at Forestry had indicated that the department was scheduled to make a presentation to the parish council later in the year and that they also wanted to become familiar with the format and process of the council meetings. It was also agreed that the component would try to participate in a community level meeting to be organised by Forestry later in the year. The communication specialist and the representative from the Forestry Department also had a good discussion/sharing of information with the RJR correspondent for St Thomas, Mr Henry Shirley who was present at the parish council meeting. - Edutainment Event at the Rudolph Elder Park on June 29 The St Thomas edutainment event of community drama and a concert with the Panos/NEEC Voices for Climate Change Education and 17 artistes. This was so far the most successful edutainment event under the campaign. Well over 400 persons were in attendance at the event and the interaction between the Women s Media Watch theatre group and the audience went very well. The audience was very responsive to the artistes performances. The parish council s support was critical to the success of the St Thomas activities. The Secretary Manager and the acting Parish Disaster Coordinator were very supportive and provided guidance and useful contacts to service providers in the parish. The parish council representatives also assisted with mobilisation and publicity for the event and took care of all administrative and logistic concerns regarding the necessary licenses etc for the event. They secured the park free of cost, ensured the provision of electricity and arranged for sanitation and clean up of the park. - Follow up Training for St Thomas Emergency Operation Centre-As a follow up to our outreach activities in St Thomas, the parish council has requested and (received approval for) from component 3, funds to help them train personnel for and activate their Emergency Response Centre. The workshop/training will be centred on the operation of the Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) which is designed to provide Parish Disaster Mitigation Planning & Response Management Committee members to operate in the Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) during the time of emergencies. This training takes place on July 18-19, Press and Publicity- Community media was widely used for the St Thomas activities. A banner was designed by a local service provider and mounted outside of the park before the event. Flyers were printed and disseminated by the parish council, by community members and by NEPA at the RADA Open Day. RJR correspondent Henry Shirley also mentioned/promoted the event in the Rural Report slot on RJR s Jamaica Morning programme with Alan Magnus and Paula Ann Porter. A radio ad

3 3 promoting the event was developed and was used by the town crier as well as on advertising slots on Power 106. The communication specialist and a representative from Panos also did interviews on Power 106 to promote the event in St Thomas and the project activities. Target groups engaged-media, students, local government representatives/the parish council and the Morant Bay community/public. Successes: Planning and implementation of the event worked well because of the tremendous support from the parish council. Mobilisation and engagement of the public was guided by suggestions/advice from the parish council who understood very well what would attract citizens Venue was ideal in the centre of the town and near to taxi stands, the main road and the market areas. The timing of the event was ideal-it was on a month end when the town had lots of people and also it was the last day of school so many young people were free and were looking for entertainment. Students were therefore very engaged in the edutainment activity. The team approach of working in conjunction with Panos/NEEC Voices Project and NEPA gave added strength and visibility to efforts and supported a harmonised approach to public education and sensitisation. It also helped in addressing the issue of a similar event being held on the same day at the RADA office in the parish. Challenges: The fact that none of the stakeholders (parish council, project staff etc) knew of the RADA event beforehand and that they were utilising the resource persons and organisations which the campaign had targeted for the expo in the park was a huge challenge. Luckily NEPA, in its role of mobilising participants for the expo, was able to recognise this challenge and communicate it to the rest of the team so that alternative plans could have been made. Lessons Learnt & The Way Forward: Continue working closely with parish councils for effective planning and implementation of the parish level activities. Continue to encourage parish councils to identify existing environment and disaster response initiatives which they wish to implement and which can be considered for support under the project. Continue to keep the Director of Communications in the Ministry abreast of activities so that she can involve the Minister in the campaign activities wherever possible.

4 4 SCENES FROM THE ST THOMAS PARISH OUTREACH EVENT ON JUNE 29, 2012

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