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The title of this blog was sent to us by Amanda Murdoch, the Fourth Grade Elementary Teacher at the International School here in Aruba. It is a quote by Mother Teresa and she revealed that it is their fourth-grade motto.
Amanda sent us the letter below and this story is best told in her own words:
Dear Bucuti and Tara Beach Resort, and Mr. Marc Geisbers,
We are writing to thank you for all your support of Eco Kids! Our non-profit company is a big success and we have now expanded and are growing organic spinach, habanero peppers, thai basil and hopefully soon tomatoes!
We have learned a lot about your resort and that you are the first CarbonNeutral® resort hotel in North America! Your work toward sustainability is very inspiring to us. We agree that owner Ewald Biemans is a visionary in sustainable tourism and we are very proud of our partnership with you.
Here is an article we wrote for International School Services which will be featured in their social media campaigns. ISS will also be sharing our project at their annual global conference in June. Eco Kids and Bucuti and Tara Beach Resort will be presented as one of the best "things" of 2020-2021.
Welcome to Eco Kids! We are grade 4 students at the International School of Aruba who wanted to make a difference in our community. We are young entrepreneurs and ecologists. Eco Kids all started with our aquaponic mint garden. We started this garden to learn more about sustainable farming methods as part of our study of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Aquaponic farming uses 90% less water which is great for the dry island of Aruba and great for the planet. We had our garden and we had a lot of mint, but we weren't sure what to do with it. We decided to try to create a business to sell our organic mint. We worked together to create a company name and design a logo with the help of a logo designer who donated their skills to our class. We decided to be a non-profit company and donate all proceeds to animal rescue organizations. This year we also worked with Sgt. Pepper's Friends, an animal rescue organization in Aruba. Going there inspired us to want to help. We love animals and want to do everything we can to save them and make them happy.
The only problem was, we didn't have any customers. With the help of our teacher Ms. Amanda Murdoch, we contacted the Bucuti and Tara Beach Resort to see if they needed any mint for their restaurant. As a carbon-neutral eco-resort with a sustainability focus, Bucuti and Tara was the perfect partner. We are now delivering to the resort weekly, and have joined with them in donating all proceeds to animal rights organizations.
Here are some quotes about how we feel about our project:
"Thank you Bucuti and Tara Beach Resort for helping us realize our dream of starting an eco-friendly, non-profit business. You inspire us to keep going to change the world!" Grade 4
"It is cool that kids are selling mint and kids can start their own business. It is exciting to see what we can do together." Emma and Cami
"I like how we are all eco friendly and have an aquaponic garden to help the earth and the community." Mia
"My motto is, don't say it, do it. If you want to help, don't just talk about it, find a way to do it." Karan
"Kids can change the world." Jaden
Our grade 4 motto: "Small things done with great love will change the world." Mother Teresa
Thank you again for all you do for the planet and Aruba!
Amanda Murdoch
Elementary Team Lead
Grade Four Teacher
International School of Aruba