'Seaweek' at Christmas Island • Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development

Across the week-long event, the Community Education team delivered school-based education programs to students at the Christmas Island District High School. As well as exploring the concept of ‘citizen science’ and its role in managing aquatic resources, students also participated in two simulated programs (based on real citizen science programs) to consolidate this learning.

The Community Education team also took part in a variety of community engagement events as part of the Seaweek celebrations which included:

Beach clean ups and audits at Flying Fish Cove and Greta Beach, with 85kg and 490kg of marine debris collected, respectively (https://www.facebook.com/IslandCareChristmasIsland/?ref=page_internal);
The Family Fun Day held at the Flying Fish Cove, where we had an interactive touch pool, a sensory beachcombing table and footage showing the Baited Remote Underwater Video System (BRUVS) research that’s been carried out at the IOTs (Indian Ocean Territories) over the past decade;
A kids ‘crafternoon’, where children participated in a series of rotational craft activities, focusing on marine and sustainability themes; and
‘Research @ Rumah’ – essentially a Science in the Pub themed event where a diverse range of presenters explored topics of interest to the Christmas Island community,
including fishing sustainability, CI’s booby bird populations, plastic waste recycling initiatives on island, Seaweek beach auditing outcomes and freediving.

The week was very busy, with barely a moment to rest! We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and felt the Seaweek celebration was a huge success for the Christmas Island community and a great way to increase awareness and understanding of sustainable Fisheries management (including biosecurity messages) through school and community engagement.

Seaweek, a joint initiative of Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD), Christmas Island Tourism Association (CITA), and the WA Department of Water, Environment and Regulation (DWER) through Keep Australia Beautiful (KAB) staff, is aimed at raising awareness of the local marine environment at Christmas Island and fostering community stewardship.