September 09, 2026 No comments
CPS: Thursday is World Suicide Prevention Day – “Changing the Narrative on Suicide, Start the Conversation”
SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY, (DCOMM) – Suicide remains a major public-health challenge, claiming more than 720,000 lives worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Thursday, September 10, 2026, marks World Suicide Prevention Day. The Collective Prevention Service (CPS), an executive agency of the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (VSA), is using the observance to raise awareness, reduce stigma and encourage persons experiencing emotional distress to seek support. Suicide affects people of all ages and from every region of the world. Globally, it is the third-leading cause of death among persons between the ages of 15 and 29. The 2026 observance marks the third and final year of the triennial theme, “Changing the Narrative on Suicide,” accompanied by...
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September 08, 2026 No comments
New Awareness Sign Installed at Princess Juliana International Airport by Nature Foundation
SINT MAARTEN (SIMPSON BAY-AIRPORT) - The Nature Foundation Sint Maarten is pleased to announce the installation of a new awareness sign in the arrival area of Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) as part of the Keep the Reef Off the Runway campaign, funded by the CITES Secretariat. The campaign aims to raise awareness about the importance of leaving marine life and natural materials where they belong and discouraging visitors from collecting shells, corals, and other marine species as souvenirs. In 2025 alone, more than 6,000 kilograms of marine materials — including shells, corals, and rocks — were confiscated at the airport. This staggering amount highlights the importance of raising awareness among visitors about the impacts and legal implications of removing marine materials...
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September 08, 2026 No comments
Tadzio Bervoets Leads Barbados Training on Sustainable Fisheries and Marine Spatial Planning
SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - Sint Maarten marine biologist and natural resource manager Tadzio Bervoets recently delivered three days of practical training in Barbados to support sustainable fisheries and marine spatial planning. Held from September 1 to 3 at the invitation of the Barbados Marine Spatial Planning office, in collaboration with the Barbados fisheries department, the training brought together fisheries and conservation professionals to build, deploy and analyse footage from Baited Remote Underwater Video systems, commonly known as BRUVs. These underwater camera systems record marine life without capturing or handling animals. Bervoets guided participants through the process, from constructing the equipment to reviewing footage and discussing how the findings can inform fisheries management and ocean planning. “The goal was to provide practical skills...
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September 08, 2026 No comments
STORIES OF ST. MAARTEN LAUNCHES A YEAR OF READING AND DISCOVERY
SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - As September marks Literacy Month, the Philipsburg Cultural and Community Center is proud to announce Stories of St. Maarten: A Year of Reading & Discovery, a sustained reading-promotion programme that will run from September 2026 through May 2027. The initiative places local literature, St. Maarten identity and meaningful student participation at the heart of reading. Launched during Literacy Month, the programme responds to a simple but important goal: to help children experience reading not only as a school requirement, but as a source of enjoyment, imagination, confidence, cultural connection and discovery. Throughout the school year, participating students will read, listen, discuss, create and reflect through monthly author and book focuses, classroom reading circles, author encounters, creative assignments...
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September 07, 2026 No comments
SMART 2027 Opens Registration with “Chirp First Early Bird Season”
SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - The St. Maarten/St. Martin Annual Regional Tradeshow (SMART) will return on June 14–18, 2027, and has officially launched registration with the “Chirp First Early Bird Season.” This was announced today after a meeting of the four main SMART partners: l' Office du Tourisme, St. Maarten Tourism Bureau, the Club du Tourisme, and the St. Maarten Hospitality & Trade Association (SHTA). Visitors to the 2026 edition received a “Save the Date” note two weeks ago, along with a thank-you note for participating in the 18th edition in June this year. As of last Friday, the date had officially been reserved in the regional events calendar of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA). As the Northeastern Caribbean’s largest business-to-business...
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