Island Event Recap

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Date … Nov. 2008 - POLYNESIA

Ecology
At a time when everybody is talking about sustainable development and environmental protection, tahitiguide has the pleasure of offering you a new section about local eco-news!

"We don't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we are borrowing it from our children"
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

 Heard a few months ago in Bora Bora, by the President of French Polynesia
While politicians are often accused of "double talk", it is up to you to verify if the words of our President, Gaston Tong Sang, deserve our confidence. A native of Bora Bora, where he has also been the Mayor for many years, Gaston Tong Sang has succeeded with real feats in the context of sustainable development on his island, often in partnership with the island's major hotels .

After his election, he declared that he expected to continue to lead Bora Bora in the environmental area. "Bora Bora is an extraordinary island... Her lagoon is unique! This of course represents great assets but this is far from being enough, it is even far behind. Today, we have to compete on the quality of the environment. Tomorrow, I am sure, destinations will be ranked according the quality of their water, of their air and of their land. If you do not meet these criteria of quality, the destination will no longer be on the map. This is tomorrow's tourism".

 Tila Bréaud, "For safeguarding the rivers of Tahiti"
One of the most likeable persons of the island, Tila Bréaut, an authentic vahine of the old days, who has nevertheless been able to live with her time, has shown for over 82 years her dedication to the respect of nature. She just published a pamphlet without concession on the negative impact of modernity in Tahiti, which turns our beautiful rivers in open space garbage dumps. In her book "Lettre ouverte au Pays - Les rivières escamotées" (Open Letter to the Country - the Vanishing Rivers), she strongly calls on Government to react to the size of this disaster. She observes that economic aspects overtake ancestral values of respect for nature. Illegal extraction of rocks, permanent trash dumping on our shores, daily and ubiquitous pollution of the water, Tila gives us a shameful status report on what has become of our rivers, source of life, of prosperity and means of communication in our islands. . Her personal experience with her childhood's river in Papara, the Mateoro, is moving enough to make it the battleground of this next big campaign. Stop denaturating our rivers, the message has been heard. By everybody? Maybe not yet, but it will be. Either that or you don't know Tila...

 Polynesia's major hotels getting involved in favor of sustainable development.
Since the implantation of the Méridien hotel chain in Tahiti, this group has made efforts to meet challenges in terms of sustainable development. Even if the message is not always perceived at its true value, the Meriden hotel's management have standards that they make efforts to comply with according to the principles of sustainable development and environmental protection.

The Méridien succeeded in reducing its electric bill by 5% by using low consumption light bulbs within its hotel. But personnel is also made aware of water consumption control, the use of biodegradable cleaning products and waste management (sorting). Management has also taken measures to improve their employee's quality of life on their work place (equal male-female employment opportunity, tobacco free environment, obesity control, cultural respect, more balanced meals, etc.). Within the township of Punaauia where the Méridien Tahiti is located, actions have also been taken in partnership with the City to preserve the coastline (lagoon management plan, creation of an underwater trail, turtle protection program, etc.) as well as protection of surrounding nature.

 See the Cartzoom location of Hotel Meridien Tahiti

AN ECO-TAHITI GLIMPSE 
Biofuels have been in existence since the start of the automobile industry.
- Nikolaus Otto, inventor of the internal combustion engine, developped his invention while using ethanol (alcohol of vegetable origin)
- Rudolf Diesel, inventor of the engine of the same name, made his machines run on peanut oil.

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