Wednesday June 6 2004

Townsville is set to play host to 68 students from as far away as the Sunshine Coast for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s Future Leaders Congress at Townsville City Council this Friday (June 4 2004).

GBRMPA Education Manager, Angela Colliver, said schools throughout Queensland and Australia were working hard to protect the Great Barrier Reef for the future.

“The Future Leaders Congress is growing year by year. Students are taking part in initiatives like the Reef Guardian Schools Program and getting excited about conservation and reef protection issues,” she said.

This year students will meet at Townsville City Council to develop a charter of shared beliefs as leaders of tomorrow and youth of today.

“The charter relates to what the students would like to see regarding the future of our seas and oceans,” Ms Colliver said.

The Congress will coincide with World Environment Day on Saturday and the Eco Fiesta in Queens Gardens on Sunday.

“On Sunday, at 12.30pm, the students will present their charter to the public at the Eco Fiesta and ask for comments. Their enthusiasm is great to see and it fits in with the question of Wanted Seas and Oceans Dead…or Alive? Which is the theme for World Environment Day this year,” she said.

There will be ten Schools from Townsville participating along with St Michaels School on Palm Island, Bambaroo State School near Ingham and Sunshine Beach State High School near Noosa Heads.

The five students from the Sunshine Coast raised the funds for their airfares in order to participate.