Last chance to apply to our student art competition, the Science Without Borders® Challenge!

One month left to apply to our student art competition

There is still time to participate in our international student art competition, the Science Without Borders® Challenge!

The Challenge is an annual art competition that engages students to promote the need to preserve, protect, and restore the world’s oceans and aquatic resources. The contest is free to enter and open to middle and high school students 11-19 years old. Be sure to submit your artwork by March 6 for a chance to win up to $500 in prizes!

This year the Science Without Borders® Challenge theme is “The Sixth Extinction.” Human actions have negatively impacted the environment in many ways, which have led to an increased rate of extinction and many more endangered species. For this year’s contest, we are asking students to create a piece of artwork that highlights the beauty and importance of a marine species that is on the brink of extinction.

The artwork will be judged in two categories: 11-14 year-olds and 15-19 year olds. In each category, the first place winners will receive a $500 scholarship, second place winners a $350 scholarship, and the third place winners a $200 scholarship. We also have $50 in prizes for winners of our “People’s Choice” award. We strongly encourage international students to apply and look forward to judging a large and diverse pool of entries this year.

This activity is a great way for teachers to include STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) in their classes. Although the contest requires students to apply individually, it is a great assignment to give to an entire class. We have provided educational resources for teachers to help teachers integrate this into art and science classrooms. We also have compiled information to help students learn about the theme and gain an understanding of a species’ risk of extinction. This includes information on how to look up species listed as endangered or critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

For more details, please visit our website at www.lof.org/SWBChallenge.

After the Storm: Standing with Our J.A.M.I.N. Family in Jamaica

There are moments in this work that feel heartbreakingly familiar.

Two weeks after we completed our Jamaica Awareness of Mangroves in Nature (J.A.M.I.N.) programming, Hurricane Melissa made landfall. A powerful Category 5 hurricane, Melissa is now tied with Hurricane Allen in 1980 for the strongest winds ever recorded in an Atlantic storm. Like Hurricane Dorian, which devastated The Bahamas in 2019, Melissa will be remembered as one of the strongest hurricanes on record in the region.

For 11 years, the University of the West Indies Discovery Bay Marine Laboratory and William Knibb Memorial High School have been more than program partners. They have welcomed us into their classrooms and labs, shared meals and laughter, and committed themselves to educating their students about mangroves and coastal resilience. These colleagues and students are not distant collaborators. They are family.

And they were hit hard…

B.A.M. Turns 10: A Year of Milestones, Resilience, and Growth

The 2025–2026 academic year was one of those defining years for our Bahamas Awareness of Mangroves (B.A.M.) and Jamaica Awareness of Mangroves in Nature (J.A.M.I.N.) programs. It was a year marked by celebration, challenge, growth, and powerful full-circle moments, and a reminder of why mangrove education matters.

In The Bahamas, B.A.M. reached a major milestone: ten years of partnership and environmental education in Abaco. Since 2015, in collaboration with Friends of the Environment, we have worked alongside Patrick J. Bethel High School and Forest Heights Academy to bring hands-on mangrove science into classrooms and into the field. This year, we were proud to expand the program to S.C. Bootle High School, increasing access for students who live…

One month left to apply to our student art competition

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After the Storm: Standing with Our J.A.M.I.N. Family in Jamaica

B.A.M. Turns 10: A Year of Milestones, Resilience, and Growth