CARIBBEAN: Press Release: Barbados to host Green Expo 2003

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Bridgetown, Barbados (Mar 10) - Barbados' two leading media houses have 
joined forces to host the island's first environmental exhibition. The Nation 
Newspaper and Starcom Network will be hosting Green Expo 2003 in October in 
Barbados.
 
The three-day exposition which aims to showcase more than 60 categories of 
environmental products, services, processes, and ideas which improve business 
competitiveness and enhance personal quality of life, is inviting exhibitors 
from Barbados and the Caribbean, especially eco-tourism destinations.
 
Barbados' Minister of Physical Development and the Environment, Elizabeth 
Thompson, speaking at the launch of the exposition has thrown her full 
support behind this private sector venture and said that this exposition must 
signal the beginning of long term change in Barbados.
 
"Government cannot do it all but in so far as I lead the Ministry of the 
Environment at this time I want to commit to working with you to transform 
Barbados. I do not see this as a greening project. I do not see this as an 
exposition; I see this as a transformation of the physical, social, and 
environmental landscape of Barbados. So that when we speak in terms of 
redefining Barbados for the new economy, for the challenges of the globalised 
world, to receive persons from all over the globe to carry out a range of 
activities, social, cultural, tourism-related, and economic, what I see is 
not only economic change but economic sustainability anchored in an 
environment that is pristine, that is salubrious, that all of us can enjoy," 
she said.
 
She added that there was a need for attitudinal change which must not only be 
at the level of the individual but also at the corporate level.
 
"The culture of business has to change as well. It is important for the 
Nation to help to get business to promote green products and appreciate that 
there are green technologies which are cheaper, in the long term even if not 
up front, than a lot of the other technologies which we currently use."
 
Editor-in-Chief of the Nation, Harold Hoyte, said that this was a historic 
undertaking because it was the first time that an island as small as Barbados 
would be attempting such a massive undertaking in the Caribbean and if it was 
successful, its impact would be resounding.
 
Hoyte explained that the green thrust arose out of a series of meetings in 
which management of both media houses met at the turn of the last century 
(1999) to prioritise public outreach programmes for Barbados.
 
"We decided that the single most important factor in the new century would be 
the environment. We felt that as the caretakers of two large media houses the 
management of the two outfits at the turn of the century had a solemn 
responsibility to commit the companies to a substantial input into a 
sustainable programme that would benefit our country and citizens in 
developing a wonderful world," he said punning on Louis Armstrong's song 
"Wonderful World".
 
"We recognized that we were merely at the starting leg of a relay race that 
would outlive all of us. If we started poorly we would put undue pressure on 
those who must succeed us on the second, third, and the anchor legs of the 
race and we were unlikely to find the solutions and survival techniques that 
were needed. As conduits for public education and information we understand 
the importance of putting issues in perspective and setting the appropriate 
agenda," Hoyte added.
 
Coordinator of Green Expo 2003, Terry Ally, said that the event though hosted 
in Barbados was an exposition for the entire Caribbean to exhibit and view 
the kinds of products, services, processes, and ideas from which Caribbean 
peoples and business persons can benefit.
 
Special exhibits at the expo include "Midnight Sun" a solar-powered champion 
car from the University of Waterloo; an "Eco House" showcasing "green" modern 
amenities which make life more comfortable; a "Hurricane House" in which one 
can experience a "hurricane"; the "Wet Reef Experience" for kids 10 years and 
younger; a petting zoo with animals from rabbits to snakes; "Nature's Food, 
Shelter, Clothing" demonstrated by Amerindians from Guyana; an eco-tour for 
students; and, the hosting of the Caribbean Youth Environment Symposium by 
the Barbados Environmental Youth Programme.
 
The expo takes place at the Sherbourne Conference Centre located on the 
outskirts of the capital Bridgetown, October 16-18, 2003. An Exhibitor's 
Prospectus and further information can be obtained online at 
http://greenexpo.bb. The full text of the addresses by Harold Hoyte and 
Elizabeth Thompson are available online at the Green Expo 2003 website 
(http://greenexpo.bb) via the "Newsroom" menu item.
 
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Terry Ally
Coordinator
Green Expo
Fontabelle
St Michael
Barbados
Tel: (246) 430-5410 or 430-5413
Fax: (246) 427-6968
Email: terryally@greenexpo.bb
Website: http://greenexpo.bb