The Body Shop® will supervise the sinking of the ‘Love mermaids’’ statue in the Bunaken National Park (TN), Manado, North Sulawesi. It is part of the effort to regenerate and nurture the coral reefs in Bunaken which have been damaged due to the activity of illegal fishing.
The Love Mermaids statue is a collaboration between Grand Luley Resort and the Marine Foundation. This program continues the saving of our coral reefs program that was started by The Body Shop® in 2013 by the sinking of the mermaid statue in Amed, Bali. The statue is made with PH neutral cement and designed to give a substrate for coral reefs to settle and to provide fish habitat. This activity is useful in speeding up recovery of coral reefs as well as an interesting tourist attraction especially for diving. The sinking activity and placement of this artwork aims to develop sustainable tourism and help boost the economy in the area.
The Love Mermaids statue sinking activity will be conducted on Saturday (11/14). Suzy Hutomo, CEO The Body Shop® Indonesia; Arief Ali, Grand Manager of Grand Luley; Celia Gregory, Founder of The Marine Foundation; Wayan Winten, Balinese Sculptors; and Rilly Djohani, Founding Director of the Coral Triangle Center will attend the ceremony. The Launch Ceremony will be attended by the traditional TAMO who will perform a local ritual.
Bunaken National Park is a protected marine reserve in North Sulawesi with unique geological forms, diversity of fish, coral reefs and mangrove. Located in Wallacea, a biogeographical designation for a group of mainly Indonesian islands separated by deep water straits from the Asian and Australian continental shelves, named after the naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace.
Suzy Hutomo said The Body Shop® Indonesia is actively supporting the restoration and preservation of coral reefs as part of their contribution to climate change mitigation. “It describes our commitment that The Body Shop® Indonesia in terms of business, always emphasizing Planet, People and Profit (3P),” she explained. If the planet is not well restored and maintained, it will affect all aspects in life, including the business itself.
Celia Gregory says artificial reef structures such as the Love mermaids statue is an “art” activity to improve the awareness and education around environmental issues. The love mermaids is part of her pioneering international program Living sculptures in the Sea; these artworks attract marine life to live and grow on and within them. Their design assists coral reef restoration by providing a solid substrate for corals to settle and a hiding place for fish, supported by fishing restrictions around the site, they assist in the replenishment of fish stocks. The activity generates job opportunities by attracting more visitors for ecotourism through water activities such as diving and snorkelling nurturing a sustainable economy for the locals. “This is a creative approach which inspires us to get involved in sustainable solutions for environmental issues,” she added.
Arief Ali said that he is supportive of restoration and conservation programs in Bunaken and claims it is the best marine park in the world. Nowadays, many of the coral reefs in Bunaken are permanently under threat from excessive fishing activities, using cyanide and unfriendly infrastructure development. “By this activity, we are hoping to help coral reef restoration and improve sustainable tourism activity in Bunaken,” Arief said.
Indonesia is the at the heart of the coral triangle which is acknowledged globally for its biodiversity. Unfortunately, most of our coral reefs are in poor health. Currently, the amount of coral reefs in a good condition is only about 30%, meanwhile the rest are damaged. Coral reefs are a habitat and breeding grounds for many fishes and a wide variety of marine life and its damage will reduce the amount of fishes thus threatening the livelihood of people who live in coastal areas.
About The Body Shop® Indonesia
The Body Shop® is a natural and ethical beauty brand from England. The Body Shop® is constantly looking for natural ingredients from across the globe to bring you products that are effective and increase your natural beauty. The Body Shop® Indonesia (in operation since 1992) has grown and developed together with the people of Indonesia and has more than 134 stores spread out through many regions of Indonesia. As a company that has a high responsibility to society; The Body Shop® Indonesia runs their corporate social responsibility through their social values called Values of The Body Shop®, which includes Defend Human Rights, Protect Our planet, Against Animal Testing, Community Trade, Activate Self-Esteem. Headquarters of The Body Shop® Indonesia is located in Bintaro, Tangerang is the winner of the 2009 Green Office Competition. Information about The Body Shop® Indonesia can be seen in www.thebodyshop.co.id
About The Grand Luley Resort
The Grand Luley Resort is a 5-stars hotel located near to Tongkaina beach, Bunaken, North Sulawesi Owned by The Indonesia franchise of the ethical brand the Body Shop Indonesia, the resort has been remodelled and transformed into an Eco resort that reflects their ethos of Planet, People and Profit (3P). http://www.luleyhotels.com
About The Marine Foundation
Celia Gregory is a sculptor from the United Kingdom, an internationally recognized artist and founder of The Marine Foundation. In 2013 Celia was invited to be a member of The Ocean Artists Society www.oceanartistssociety.org. The Development of Marine Foundation’s Living sculptures in the sea Initiative was funded by the Roddick Foundation and over the last five years has created and installed statues beneath the surface of the water in several sites in Indonesia where coral reefs are severely damaged. She works in close cooperation with distinguished scientists, environment NGOs, local artists and stakeholders. The most famous sculpture is the Coral Goddess www.facebook.com/pages/The-Coral-Goddess located in the Karang Lestari Bio-rock® regeneration project in Pemuteran, Bali, winner of the UNDP award for the preservation of the marine environment .
