Nature is the gift that keeps on giving. Its bounty is both vast and varied. We all draw from nature, whether it's for food, water, medicine, beautiful plants, and animals, or spiritual connections. Sadly, we have depleted nature's basket, and every day, its abundance diminishes. Here's how you can have festive fun without overburdening Mother Nature.

In 1998 the coral bleaching event that hit Seychelles almost destroyed the pristine reefs of Cousin Island Special Reserve. “The Cousin reefs had been protected from fishing and other impacts for more than 40 years as this is a no-take strictly controlled protected area. The coral ecosystem here was very sensitive because it had not been faced with disturbances in 4 decades or more and was one of the first in Seychelles to go,” says Dr. Nirmal Shah, the CEO of Nature Seychelles.

“Long term conservation programs are difficult to maintain in small island developing states (SIDS) like Seychelles”, says Nature Seychelles CEO Dr. Nirmal Shah, a conservation practitioner with over 40 years' experience.  

If you visit Cousin Island Special Reserve at a certain period of the year we can almost guarantee that you will see a turtle on the beach or nesting. The turtle season on Cousin is now in full swing. Every day, dozens of Hawksbill turtles come onshore to lay their eggs. As ecotourism returns to the island, turtle and human interactions are inevitable. We follow a set of international Best Practices to ensure that these critically endangered species nest undisturbed while providing visitors with a rare opportunity to observe them as they do so.