Teen activists wade in on Brac protest

| 04/02/2021 | 9 Comments
Protect Our Future activists protest on Cayman Brac

(CNS): As work continues on the controversial private airbase on Cayman Brac, posing a threat to rock iguana habitat, teenagers from Protect Our Future are also now urging a halt to the project. The young activists were on the Brac recently lending support to the campaign there in the face of the environmental threats posed not just by the development but future operations.

“The clear lack of cultural appreciation by the parties involved is nothing short of appalling,” Thomas Dickens from Grand Cayman said after the trip, where POF members met the with young people on Cayman Brac who are fighting against the plan proposed by Daggaro, an aviation and aerospace services company.

The POF activists said the concerns about this development on the Brac are the same as those the teenagers have encountered on Grand Cayman, where inappropriate developments are being “fuelled by ignorance and greed”, they said in a release.

“The ignorance factor is one where the public itself is kept ignorant about many of the proposed development projects. Developers can plead ignorance when they fill or clear historical or cultural grounds, the community can plead ignorance that they do not know what is going on. In turn, slowly, we inherit a future that we never wanted,” the activists said, noting that in this case all of the above applied.

Asking who was profiting and how many Caymanian jobs will really result from it, the teenagers expressed doubts about claims by the developers that this is just going to be a base for search and rescue operations and medivacs.

The teenagers said that no one wants Cayman Brac to be a drone and military base for non-Caymanians, concerns fuelled by the content on Daggaro’s own website.

“We have many questions,” said POF member Nicholas Corin. “Do the developers even know if the land is suitable for this type of project, even though they are already filling it with rock. From what we’ve observed on the Brac and heard from local youth advocates, the project seems to be harmful to tourism, the environment and neighboring properties. The noise pollution alone is a huge drawback.”

The youngsters are once again urging the adults who are old enough to vote to help them protect their future.

“We stood up against the proposed port project, the same project that would have cost us millions, the same project that the government happily sold to our future with no reservations at all,” the young activists told CNS.

The teenagers, who have been involved in a number of environmental campaigns over the last two years, said government and local developers continue to sell their future without reflection.

“Now we have the Brac, one of the world’s last true paradises, and without proper diligence and community engagement, the Daggaro project continues the cycle of greed and ignorance,” they stated. “Because of COVID-19, we hoped that our government and developers would start rethinking Cayman’s future. We proposed a true blue-green economy, one where we valued our land, our sea, our communities, one where educating our youth was prioritised above keeping them ignorant.”

Disappointed by what is happening to their own island, the new Brac recruits, Jordan Grant and Daniella Christian, said, “With the credibility of the Brac at stake, we will continue to take a stand against ignorance. It is never easy to face uncertainty. It takes true bravery to face ignorance and greed.”

Sticking with their image-driven social media campaigns, the youngsters took a number of pictures at the site where the project is underway.

As well as being an area of historic cultural significance, it is one of just a few remaining habitats for the endangered Sister Islands rock iguana.


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Category: development, Land Habitat, Local News, Science & Nature

Comments (9)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    In case anyone forgot.
    They wanted to put a spaceport on SMB for commercial flights into space. I guess forget the port, spaceport next?

    Cayman is entering into High net worth people and space flights for tourism. CIG has serious plans for the future only the younger generation can wield that type of power and understanding with incorporating the protection of Earth.

    A spokesman from the Cayman Aeronautics and Space Administration said: “We are extremely excited to be the first Caribbean island to launch this type of tourism.

    “It is an ambitious project but one that we hope will really take off as a way to attract more people to experience these beautiful islands, both on and above the earth’s surface.”

    “The launch pads will also be a tourist draw in themselves as there aren’t many places in the world where you can be up close to a rocket taking off.”

    Don McDougall, regional manager for the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, Europe said: “We are always looking for new attractions to offer the thousands of holiday-makers that visit the Cayman Islands every year.

    “Space tourism is something we have always been interested in and the sands of Seven Mile Beach provide the perfect platform for these launch pads.”

    The project will take four years to complete with the first Cayman Space Tour taking off on April 1st, 2021.

    https://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/cayman-islands-set-to-become-space-tourism-capital-of-caribbean/

  2. Anonymous says:

    Get up, stand up! Dont give up the fight! We support you! I am so happy POF have spines unlike most “top” females and males in disguise!

  3. Anonymous says:

    So my suggestion to POF would be to use their energy to identify “HISTORIC CULTURE SIGNIFICANCE” sites. From there get them recognized as such and do a public relations/marketing/social media campaign.

    It is sad that the Cayman of past has been taken over by a generation of political vipers who will sell their soul in order to make a dollar.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Assertions are being made that this will be a drone and military base run by non-caymanians, lol to all. Talk about ignorance is POF aligned with Qanon conspiracy theorists.

    Now to all the well-intentioned POF members, you may want to start a campaign to save Bert Marson’s old house that adjoins the West End Community Park on the east side. This is a very historical site and would be a perfect fit for any future expansion by Daggaro.

    And by the way, the foreigners/expats/non-caymanians would not be able to do such a project without the approval and full consent of the ALL CAYMANIAN DEVELOPMENT CONTROL BOARD.

  5. Anonymous says:

    When needed use the kids for leverage. Nice one.

  6. Anonymous says:

    Thanks for these young people.

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