Lion Fish, Locals, and Art

The Vieques Project Week group started the day with Ardel, who is a local artist, activist and feminist BA on the island. We met with local teens to start an art project that will help build a community space near the Cieba tree. Our group painted images of local wildlife onto recycled satellite dishes to create one of the most unique parks in the world! While we worked hard to collaborate with the residents of Vieques, Ardel kept reminding us that this was “our park” too, which made us feel that we will have a life long connection to this incredible place.

After putting the finishing touches on our fused glass project with Sandra Reyes, we headed to Esperanza to meet with Mark Martin. Mark took half the group snorkeling and lion fish hunting, while the remaining group stayed on the beach to help pick up trash. Both groups had an opportunity to snorkel, but it was a powerful experience to improve such a beautiful location. Many locals commented on how great it was to see tourists contributing to the island, rather than just depleting it’s resources.