DCNA meets on Curaçao
Last week the board of the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) met on Curaçao. The participants were welcomed by Governor Goedgedrag who opened the meeting and invited the participants to Fort Amsterdam for the regular get-together of the Governor’s Cabinet after the meeting.  The main focus of the meeting was the issues faced by the Parks of the islands, the possible solutions and potential obstacles. Another important topic was the communication plan aimed at creating awareness in Holland on the great biodiversity that is present in the overseas parts of the Kingdom. Linked to this is the expectation of the Dutch Postcode Lottery that DCNA will provide exposure for the Lottery in return for their financial support. The Postcode Lottery this year accepted DCNA as one of its beneficiaries, providing half a million Euro as yearly financial support for DCNA’s trust fund.

The DCNA board meets twice a year, bringing together the park managers of all the Dutch Caribbean islands including Aruba, as well as two independent financial experts and a former Dutch parliamentary leader, to discuss ongoing affairs. The Secretariat of DCNA runs the activities of DCNA that come out of a five year strategic plan and yearly action plans. The main task of DCNA is to fundraise for its trust fund that in ten years time is intended to provide stable and secure funding from its revenues for all the parks. Another important objective of DCNA is to help the parks with capacity building and training; Funders like to see that their money is well spent on capable and effective nature management organizations. In order to be able to effectively fundraise, particularly in the Netherlands, it is essential that the Dutch public understands that the Kingdom of the Netherlands includes a treasure trove of biodiversity in its smallest and most vulnerable overseas parts, where it is at risk and needs careful management.

DCNA has developed a comprehensive communication plan to build awareness in the Netherlands of overseas biodiversity, targeting Dutch nature lovers using the help of its Dutch Partner organizations, which include all the major nature conservation organizations in the Netherlands. The communication plan also takes into account the fact that DCNA was granted beneficiary status of the Postcode Lottery this year, which brings with it the expectation of a lot of communication efforts showcasing this relationship with the Lottery.

Some of DCNA's board members talking with the Governor during the traditional "Kabinetsborrel": 
from l to r: Governor Goedgedrag, Rueben Thompson of the Emilio Wilson Estate Foundation in St. Maarten, nicole Esteban of St. Eustatius National Park foundation, Frank Boekhout of the Nature Foundation St. Maarten, and Luis Santine, one of DCNA's independent financial board members.

In light of the upcoming constitutional changes DCNA is making an inventory of the work of the parks on behalf of the island governments, the issues facing the parks in accomplishing those tasks, and possible solutions and obstacles that could stand in the way of those solutions. At the same time the research and monitoring needs required by international conventions and treaties to protect biodiversity are being identified. DCNA will use this information to present concrete and specific recommendations with regard to the process of constitutional change and to show what will be needed to ensure adequate compliance of international agreements by all the future new entities.

Planting native trees in the Christoffel Park to compensate for CO2 production of travel between the islands. A Dutch documentary film maker, Willem Mouissie, making a series of 6 documentaries (one for each island) of the Dutch Caribbean biodiversity for DCNA, is capturing the action.

Since board meetings of DCNA require a lot of traveling among the islands, the board decided that for each meeting measures would be taken to offset COChristoffel Park to symbolically plant the first 25 trees of a total of 125 native trees purchased by DCNA to be planted there.

Board of DCNA visiting the Christoffel Park, from l to r: Reuben Thompson (St. Maarten), Jimmy Mijer (Aruba), Frank Boekhout (St. Maarten), Christoffelpark staff Cyril Koostra and Michelle Capriles, DCNA director Kalli De Meyer, John de Freitas (Curacao), Elsmarie Beukenboom (Bonaire), Nicole Esteban (St. Eustatius), Carmabi director Dolfi Debrot, Kai Wulf (Saba), and Paul Hoetjes (Netherlands Antilles). In back, Doeke Eisma, international member. Not present are financial board members Leendert van Driel and Luis Santine.