Environmental Education in São Tomé and Príncipe: The Challenges of Owning a Unique Biodiversity

Abstract

The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe host extraordinary biodiversity that evolved over millions of years without human presence. In the fifteenth century, the colonization of the islands created a society of migrants, associated with extensive land-use change and generally low knowledge and stewardship of autochthonous biodiversity. Formal education became widely accessible after the country’s independence but the curriculum has never been aligned with the natural heritage of the islands. Informal environmental education started in the 1990s alongside the pioneer conservation initiatives involving the scientific community. In the last decade, these efforts have multiplied, in line with the need to engage and involve local actors to promote stewardship and ensure the success of conservation efforts. Some changes were made recently at a formal level with the inclusion of environmental education curricula and new manuals. In addition, several initiatives and improvements are being developed in the private education sector. However, limited access to resources for educators reduces motivation and capacity to implement longer-term improvements. Most environmental education activities are still promoted by NGOs and mainly focus on endemic or threatened species and target school-age audiences. Other initiatives focusing on specific demographic groups have provided interesting results but are more intermittent and their impacts have largely not yet been evaluated. Improving formal assessments for current and future projects to assess impacts and refine future approaches will be essential moving forward. In addition, ensuring the involvement of local actors, coordination between different initiatives, and the use of diversified approaches will ensure that environmental education engages the widest possible audiences.

Brief Historical Background of Environmental Education in São Tomé and Príncipe

How the Landscape and History Shaped Environmental Education

Príncipe, São Tomé, and Annobón are remote oceanic islands with a unique and understudied biodiversity, which evolved over millions of years without human interaction. We were unable to find information about local perspectives on environmental education for Annobón and thus, here we will solely focus on São Tomé and Príncipe.

When the Portuguese discovered São Tomé and Príncipe in 1470, the islands were uninhabited. The human population of the islands was mostly brought from other parts of Africa, and, to a lesser extent, from Europe, in two main colonization periods. The first was associated with the slave trade and the second with contracted labor for the coffee and cocoa plantations (Seibert 2015). The islands have a history of extensive plantation agriculture that is closely related to the degradation of vast areas of forest in São Tomé and Príncipe and possibly with the extinction of endemic species before they were formally described to science. Early scientific studies to describe the biodiversity of São Tomé and Príncipe were conducted by European naturalists during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (Ceríaco et al. 2022).

The natural ecosystems of the islands, nowadays recognized for the uniqueness of their species, were poorly known and of little use for the newly established human population. The local plants and animals were unfamiliar and few edible plants and animals from the native forest were known or used (e.g., Seibert 2015). Thus, land-use change was promoted with the introduction of species and the conversion of the native ecosystems to agricultural land with introduced plants and animals that could be exploited. Some of the native ecosystems endured, due to their remoteness and difficulty of access, and the biodiversity within remained largely unknown to most people living on the islands.

Santomeans had limited access to primary education before independence and opportunities were divided between a nearly-formal setting in the plantations, which provided basic education to the workers’ children, and an informal setting called “bush school” (“escola do mato”), which took place in villages without any official context or support (Amado 2018). Secondary school only appeared in the mid twentieth century, first with a private status and later open to the wider public, but still restricted to just one school. Education was fully structured according to the norms of the hierarchical and centralized colonial administrative model. It was designed to impose civilizational standards and the European culture on students, disregarding and discriminating against the “sons of the land” and their culture (Amado 2021).

From Independence to Strategic Environmental Education Options

After centuries of colonialism, São Tomé and Príncipe achieved independence on July 12, 1975, inheriting an educational system marked by low literacy, only one post-primary school, and the absence of professional education (Barreto 2012). During the first phase of the post-independence period, called “First Republic” (also known as “Single Party Period”), from 1975 to 1990, the government made education a priority with mass literacy one of its main objectives (Cardoso 2004). In the year of independence, the illiteracy rate was 80%. Fifteen years later, it fell to 30% (MECF 2012). Today, São Tomé and Príncipe report that 92.8% (2018) of the population over 15 years old is literate, representing the best index among African countries in which Portuguese is the official language (UNESCO 2021). Despite important progress, illiteracy remains a problem, especially in some areas of the country, such as the southern and northern regions of São Tomé Island, affecting mostly the female portion of the rural population. The Santomean government has set the goal of eradicating illiteracy by 2022 (MECF 2012).

The democratic reforms and the opening of the country in the late 1980s marked the start of the “Second Republic” (“Multiparty Democracy”), bringing important interventions with the aim to establish a better framework for education. The institution of democracy gradually created opportunities for the national curriculum to become more open to incorporate the pedagogical innovations and guidelines coming from international organizations such as UNESCO, UNICEF, and UNDP (MEC 2002). In 1986, an educational reform began in the country with support from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (Portugal) and the World Bank, focusing on the production and editing of textbooks for the first 6 years of basic education. However, the program never reached its final objectives, and only a few manuals were produced. These manuals were used for over 20 years without being updated (Meia-Onça 2013).

The country has always been concerned with the quality of its educational system (Cotrim 2019). All the reforms sought to accompany changes in Santomean society and keep pace with the rest of the world, but the educational system was not ready for the new challenges facing the country (Cardoso 2004). The Basic Law of the Education System (Law 2/2003) introduced only two significant changes: an increase in compulsory schooling from 4 to 6 years and the inclusion of the 12th grade (MECJD 2006). Despite many attempts to develop a national curriculum adapted to the context and needs of the country, it was not until the last decade that the sciences received more attention. Today the curriculum is still insufficiently adapted to its audience and fails to reflect the natural heritage of the islands.

Nevertheless, the environmental education needs of the country were widely recognized and highlighted by the scientific and conservation communities, with strong and significant efforts starting in the 1990s. In 1992, São Tomé and Príncipe received assistance from the EU’s European Development Fund in support of the Forestry Commission’s efforts to prevent harvesting in primary forests and to promote efforts to educate the public about forest conservation. Under the ECOFAC Programme, an EU-funded regional program for the conservation and rational use of forest ecosystems in Central Africa, this work is still ongoing on the islands and lead to the establishment of the protected areas network of São Tomé and Príncipe. This network covers roughly one-third of the islands and culminated with the creation of two Natural Parks in 2006 (Lima et al. 2022). Meanwhile, an Action Statement on biodiversity conservation in the four Gulf of Guinea islands arose from a workshop held in 1993. This document reviewed the state of the main habitats on all the islands, current threats, and existing institutions and management actions taken so far (Juste and Fa 1994). This work led to the formation of an international group of scientists and a special issue of the journal Biodiversity and Conservation (vol 3, 1994). These events were key for synthesizing biodiversity knowledge and conservation actions for the islands, and also for igniting local actions to engage Santomeans in protecting their natural heritage.

The first environmental education activities emerged with ECOFAC around sea turtles (with Programa Tatô, still active as an independent NGO since 2018) and gray parrots. These were some of the better-known species at the time, highly pressured by the capture of individuals and eggs for food, trade, and crafts (AGRECO – SECA – CIRAD 2005). As the scientific knowledge of other groups and species increased and diversified, the need to involve the local population in environmental initiatives grew and has been a strong driver for most of the ongoing programs. The islands’ potential for ecotourism has also been an important driver for the expansion of environmental outreach activities to reach the whole population and foreign visitors.

The Current State of Environmental Education in São Tomé and Príncipe

Formal Education: Environmental Education in Public and Private Schools

The public school system on São Tomé and Príncipe had the subject of Environmental Education (EE) formally introduced in 2010, but only to the eighth grade curriculum (Barreto 2012). Most private schools use EE in their lessons, formally or informally, linked to their internal curricula or to international curricula, such as the EE benchmarks provided by the Portuguese Ministry of Education.

Public Schools

Before 2010, environmental education content could be found in the Natural Science manuals but was not considered a priority. With the educational reform in the country, teachers of basic education inserted themes related to environmental education, namely on how to protect the environment from pollution or on how to conserve the fauna and flora, through the subjects of “Physical and Social Environment” for classes from the first cycle. Classes from the second cycle worked by the “Student Manual” in the science module, in which information and /or small themes were adjusted to include environmental education.

In 2010, the NGO MARAPA (Mar, Ambiente e Pesca Artesanal), CTA (Centro Técnico de Cooperação Agrícola e Rural), and ACP-EU (African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States-European Union) sponsored the publication of the manual “Ecologia, Ambiente e Educação Ambiental em São Tomé e Príncipe” (“Ecology, Environment and Environmental Education in São Tomé and Príncipe”) to be used by teachers of the fifth and sixth grade (Carvalho et al. 2010). The manual includes simple environmental education modules together with different practical activities and teaching tools to be used by teachers of all subjects. Teachers from across the country were trained but there was no formal assessment of the program’s efficacy or impact. The manual was then used to support the elaboration of the EE curriculum for the eighth grade (under Projeto Escola+) when, after 2010, EE as a subject was inserted as part of a separate enrichment to the curriculum. Three different areas were introduced in high schools in both São Tomé and Príncipe: “Environmental Education” was introduced to eighth grade students, incorporating group work and other interactive activities to the lectures; “Health Education” to the seventh grade; and “Civic Training” for ninth graders.

The curriculum content was developed by a select group of secondary school teachers under the supervision of the Secondary Education Directorate. The educators from Projeto Escola+, coordinated by the Instituto Marquês de Valle Flôr, supported by several European partnerships, and approved by the Ministry of Education and Culture, made the school manuals available along with a series of structured training events held to promote the development of key stakeholders in the second cycle educational network (Barreto 2012). After publication, the manual was made available for teachers to use in the classroom, along with regular training offered on how to integrate the manual into the environmental education curriculum by the First Cycle Board. The curriculum was not widely adopted by teachers but achieved greater use on the island of São Tomé and was included sporadically in classes on Príncipe.

In 2014, following the inclusion of environmental education in the school curriculum, along with a dedicated teacher’s manual, actions were focused on the eighth grade students. This resulted in the production of a new EE student manual (Eloy et al. 2014). This material was intended to alert and prepare young people to the worsening environmental situation in the country, and to the need to promote sustainable economic development while preserving the islands’ biodiversity. Due to various limitations after its publication, very few people knew about the existence of this material, including teachers and students in São Tomé and Príncipe.

Private Schools

Based on a sample (n = 5) of private schools (pre-k to 12 grade) interviewed in São Tomé in 2020 and 2021, environmental education (EE) is part of the curriculum but it is not adapted to the context of the islands and does not use examples of the local biodiversity and habitats. Four schools used the curriculum published by the Portuguese Ministry of Education: Referencial de Educação Ambiental para a Sustentabilidade (Environmental Education Benchmark for Sustainability). Some schools teach about the history and geography of São Tomé and Príncipe first and then proceed with the Portuguese curriculum. Only one school incorporated a few EE topics related to the islands with the support of local NGOs. Príncipe recently opened its first private pre-k school on the island. The school integrates EE activities such as Earth Day, but EE is not yet connected to a formal curriculum.

The EE topics taught by the private schools depend on how closely they follow the Portuguese benchmarks, covering preschool to secondary level, to develop lessons and activities that aim to contribute directly to the personal and social development of their students. The ninth grade of a particular school we interviewed added “environmental sustainability,” which incorporates first-hand experiences. For instance, in one of their modules students go into the field to test water quality, using knowledge acquired in the classroom to interpret their results and reach conclusions.

Another school took a step further and incorporated EE (using a mix of both Santomean and Portuguese concepts) into their mission statement, consequently linking all their curricular activities toward raising children’s awareness about the importance of protecting and appreciating the natural world. Children as early as 12 months old have exposure to activities both in and outside of the classroom, with the purpose of promoting values and actions that can later result in the development of environmental stewardship in São Tomé and Príncipe. This particular school uses beach cleanup as its “beacon activity” to introduce the issue of trash pollution, which chronically impacts the islands’ local beaches and city centers. Their aim is to reinforce the notion that children can be an important part of the solution and they also play an active role in teaching behavioral changes to family members and civil society.

Informal Education: Past and Ongoing Efforts

The basis for informal environmental education in São Tomé and Príncipe has been built upon the recent scientific work on the species-rich and under-explored biodiversity of the islands. A project by Veríssimo et al. (2012) aimed to understand the knowledge and attitudes of key stakeholders toward biodiversity, sustainability, and natural resource management, revealed that there is still the need to improve engagement and communication with local actors. International institutions and researchers need to invest time and resources to develop effective ways to better communicate their scientific findings through environmental education. Nevertheless, major efforts on EE have been made to raise awareness about the conservation of these unique islands over the past 23 years, with several national and international projects being held in the country that reach local residents and tourists alike (Table 25.1).

Table 25.1 Summary of environmental education projects in São Tomé (ST), Príncipe (P) and both in São Tomé and Príncipe (STP)

The lack of a centralized database to track records of early EE programs in São Tomé and Príncipe makes it difficult to assemble a complete assessment of the diversity of the project aims, target populations (TP), and outputs, but there has clearly been increased investment in long-term projects over the last decade (Fig. 25.1). Based on four “one-off” and 11 currently “ongoing” informal EE projects, five take place on both islands, five exclusively in São Tomé, and five exclusively in Príncipe, although collaborations are frequent between organizations from both islands. The establishment of a larger number of NGOs in the country contributed to the increase in longevity of the programs, funding, and creation of training and employment opportunities for members of the civil society. The main topic covered is biodiversity conservation, especially focusing on the valorization of threatened species and ecosystems. Projects address a wide range of taxa and ecosystems, although some focus on a specific taxon (e.g., marine turtles, bees, and terrestrial mollusks) or topics (e.g., recycling and illegal hunting). Twelve projects target schools and local communities, but the target audience can be project specific, depending on the main aims (e.g., fishermen and fishmongers for marine ecosystem conservation or hunters for terrestrial ecosystem conservation).

Fig. 25.1

Examples of environmental education projects in São Tomé and Príncipe: (1) Arribada Club Project computer science class, Príncipe; (2) ECOFAC 4 “Net of Life” activity in Claudino Faro rural community, São Tomé; (3) ECOFAC-6 plant nursery activity with students at Diogo Vaz primary school, São Tomé; (4) Bumbu D’Iê classroom program about bee conservation, Príncipe; (5) Forest Giants Project lesson to primary school students about terrestrial biodiversity conservation and the decline of the Obô Giant Snail Archachatina bicarinata, São Tomé; (6) Gulf of Guinea Project primary school outreach program “Our Special Birds” about the endemic species of birds from São Tomé and Príncipe, São Tomé; (7) Protetuga Project hatchling release activity with school children at Praia Grande, Príncipe; (8) RaizArte “Se o Ôbo Falasse” play written, directed, and performed by high school students, São Tomé. Photo credits: (1, 4, 7) Fundação Príncipe, (2) Mariana Carvalho, (3) Raphaela Nazaré, (5) Vasco Pissarra, (6) Andrew Stanbridge, (8) BirdLife International

Approaches to Informal Environmental Education

Outreach in primary public schools is the preferred method used by the informal EE programs, possibly due to the fact that primary school students have very little exposure to environmental sciences. Informal EE projects are addressing some of the existing gaps by using a variety of hands-on methodologies and approaches within or outside the classroom. In 2011, the California Academy of Sciences pioneered a large-scale education effort based on scientific research to raise awareness about the islands’ unique biodiversity in both São Tomé and Príncipe (Drewes 2012). The Gulf of Guinea Project uses a unique approach for content assimilation, following the same cohort of students from third to fifth grades, aiming to promote knowledge and stewardship about biodiversity in students’ own “backyard.” The project distributes to each student and their teachers captivating take-home educational materials after every lesson (Fig. 25.1 (6)), using the main message: “Only Here! São Tomé and Príncipe, Our Special Islands, and Nowhere else in the World!”

The opportunities for meaningful learning outside of the classroom in the public school system are almost non-existent on the islands and 20% of the EE projects are organized as after-school programs to address this limitation. The Protetuga Project in Príncipe, for example, incorporates their turtle conservation program through the Zero Capture campaign into the school calendar, creating the unique opportunity to organize field trips to their Kaxí Tetuga Museum at Praia Grande, where students visit a biodiversity museum and participate in the release of turtle hatchlings into the ocean amongst other educational activities (Fig. 25.1 (7)). The Arribada Club, in Príncipe, introduces primary school students to computers and conservation technology, such as GPS trackers and audio recording devices (Fig. 25.1 (1)). The Forest Giants Project creates debates with students and rural communities to raise awareness about biodiversity conservation, using the story of the rapid decline of the threatened Obô Giant Snail Archachatina bicarinata and provides hands-on teaching and training opportunities for learning about local species and for interacting with the Obô Giant Snail at the Botanical Garden of Bom Sucesso, São Tomé (Fig. 25.1 (5)). Other projects create awareness using visual or performing arts. Missão Dimix Association organizes student art exhibitions made with recycled materials showcasing their focus on marine life conservation, in addition to their regular after-school programs and camps. RaizArte works with teenagers on playwriting, stage design, and performing art techniques using biodiversity, conservation, and other nature-related themes (e.g., the Se o Obô Falasse theater play addresses species conservation in São Tomé and Príncipe; Fig. 25.1 (8)). Programa Tatô develops an array of educational printed materials, such as the story book A viagem da visitante mais antiga de São Tomé e Príncipe (The journey of the oldest visitor of São Tomé and Príncipe), the activity book Livro de atividades para os dias de chuva (Activity book for rainy days), and an annual booklet Ngê di Omali (Sea people), which is distributed to primary schools with a different theme every year.

The peer teaching and learning experiences, along with facilitated themed discussions and activities, can create paths to promote a sense of ownership and valorization of the natural resources. Projects that work with specific audiences (e.g., fishermen, fishmongers, hunters, loggers, National Park staff, school teachers, and students that live in the vicinity of protected areas) used “train the trainer” methods to capacitate community leaders to conduct training sessions with their own communities using a variety of hands-on activities and facilitation tools (e.g., photo montage, films, role play, games, sports championships, cooking competitions, fairs). This method is proven to be efficient to raise environmental awareness and well accepted among communities. In a pilot study in the scope of ECOFAC 4 (Fig. 25.1 (2)), focusing on communities around São Tomé Obô Natural Park, the “train the trainer” method was shown to be a potentially strong tool to develop and promote increased knowledge toward endemic biodiversity and nature conservation. In 2018, the ECOFAC 6 project investment is working in the buffer zones of the natural parks of both São Tomé and Príncipe, developing training to promote sustainable use of natural resources for income-generating activities, imperative to generate real results toward the conservation and valorization of natural heritage, biodiversity, and ecosystems (Fig. 25.1 (3)).

The Omali Vida Nón project works with the government and coastal communities to create a network of marine protected areas across both islands through a co-management approach. It aims to create awareness and promote the adoption of alternative sustainable methods as a way of balancing human impact with the subsistence living of the communities. Likewise, to promote sustainable honey practices, the Bumbu D’Iê project provided training to beekeepers for an alternative model of honey production that does not involve bee-burning in the forest, combined with EE hands-on activities (Fig. 25.1 (4)).

Multimedia communication is used by nine of the projects to reach wider and more diverse audiences, which is frequently amplified by content productions on TV, radio, and social media. Even some of the most rural parts of the islands have radios and television sets (plugged-in to generators) available at home or at the local kiosk. Community members tend to congregate in such venues, to socialize and watch TV or listen to the radio at the end of the workday, in the evenings, and especially over the weekends. The Programa Tatô, for example, uses local media celebrities on educational radio soap operas on São Tomé to raise awareness about their sea turtle conservation program. Fauna and Flora International (2019) concluded that the use of posters and radio was an efficient and cost-effective method to reach and engage large numbers of people. The report cautioned, however, that a high level of engagement does not necessarily translate into effective dissemination of the underlying message.

Evaluation of Projects

Evaluation is a very important tool to determine what works well and what could be improved; however, only six of the EE projects (40%) have an evaluation tool in place. This makes it difficult to measure the real impact of the programs, which may compromise reporting to stakeholders and limit funding opportunities relative to projects that use quantitative data to assess impact.

EE projects that use evaluation tools commonly use questionnaires with adults, and drawings, games, or simple question-answer sheets with children, to evaluate knowledge gain and understanding of the concepts being taught. Oral interviews are commonly used to obtain direct feedback from stakeholders such as governmental authorities, teachers, school administrators, and students. ECOFAC 6 is the first project to use a more comprehensive method of evaluation, defining project indicators (e.g., days of training vs. number of people trained, number of people trained in green economy and entrepreneurship, number of followers on social media, number of students involved in awareness activities, and percentage of people with correct understanding of basic environmental concepts) to determine success. Programa Tatô has made big strides toward evaluating the impact of their conservation marketing campaign Tataluga – Mém di Omali on the consumption of sea turtle meat and eggs in São Tomé (Thomas-Walters et al. 2020).

A recent study on the use of children’s drawings to evaluate the impacts of environmental education activities (Sinclair 2020), carried out by researchers at the University of Exeter (UK) in partnership with the Protetuga project by Fundação Príncipe, provided useful insights to inform efforts for sea turtle conservation on the island. The study demonstrated that using drawings as a tool for assessing levels of knowledge about the biodiversity of Príncipe and evaluating change in children’s knowledge over time can be useful to inform interventions, is highly engaging, and has low-cost implementation on-the-ground. This assessment method demonstrated that Protetuga’s EE activities over 4 years resulted in increased knowledge of conservation issues and solutions among children.

These findings are particularly promising, as they validate some of the progress undertaken through informal education efforts in the past years and provide valuable guidance for future monitoring and recognition of the EE projects.

Challenges and Lessons Learned

One of the biggest challenges concerning formal education in the public system is the fact that EE is only part of the eighth grade curriculum, and not present in any other grade. Thus, much of EE falls under informal education, which is not offered systematically and is not connected to formal education. Furthermore, teachers are not motivated to embrace EE in and outside the classroom, due to the lack of a support system, namely proper training and resources to promote extracurricular activities. Such challenges become a serious roadblock toward making any substantial advances.

More than 60% of the local teachers from first to sixth grade have no formal educational training (MECCC 2016), and the required qualifications for filling teacher vacancies in primary and secondary education in the country are low. For example, it is possible for someone who has just finished high school to start teaching eighth grade students. This is the result of a fast-growing society built on a job market with very limited options for young people entering the workforce or pursuing a university degree. The University of São Tomé was formally founded only in 2014, after many years of existence as several different independent educational institutions. Other international universities, like the University of Évora or the Lusíada University (both from Portugal), have a branch on São Tomé, offering higher education courses. However, the tuition is typically far beyond the financial means of the target demographic, contributing to the scarcity of professionals with formal academic training. Individuals that obtain a college degree in another country rarely return to São Tomé and Príncipe due to the low salaries and scarce job opportunities. In some cases, teachers also hold appointments in other governmental departments and teaching is a second job, which means that their availability and engagement in the teaching role may be low. Institutions like the World Bank occasionally finance and provide teacher-training opportunities led by the local government in partnership with different Portuguese institutions, or private sectors. However, these opportunities are rare and generally cover small groups or a small percentage of teachers in the country.

For Príncipe residents, the conditions are even more challenging, as only recently (2012/2013) was it made possible for students to finish high school on the island. Up to a few years ago, students from Príncipe had to attend high school in São Tomé, resulting in a high percentage of youths without a high school degree. On the other hand, even with the governmental “isolation allowance” (financial incentive), Príncipe still struggles to find teachers willing to move to the island due to the high cost of living and isolation.

In March of 2021, we interviewed 10 primary and secondary school teachers from Príncipe and six from São Tomé, all working in the public system, to learn about their perception regarding their job experience satisfaction and knowledge about local biodiversity. The results showed that 56% have chosen this profession because they enjoy teaching and 37% due to a lack of options. When asked about the availability of opportunities and the kind of limitations they are confronted with regarding career advancement, they shared their concerns about the limitations imposed on career advancement, which are linked to the lack of the schools’ basic needs (e.g., electricity, water, sewage, and nutritious meals), and the absence of a recognition system for different teaching categories, with salary compensation dependent on the amount of training. Teachers interviewed in São Tomé did not receive any specific training on local biodiversity or environmental issues, but in Príncipe only one said that he had not received some type of training, either through other teachers, universities, or NGOs. Only one teacher in Príncipe and one in São Tomé stated that before becoming a teacher they did not have any knowledge about the importance of biodiversity and other issues related to the protection of the environment in São Tomé and Príncipe. All teachers we interviewed recognize the importance of the environmental issues on the islands and emphasize the role of biodiversity in maintaining the health of ecosystems.

As in the public school system, opportunities for private school teacher training on EE adapted specifically to the local context are very rare. Only one of the private schools we interviewed invested time and resources to keep their teachers connected to the subject by either bringing professionals from different areas of environmental sciences or organizing field trips to different NGOs. Overall, the support system to either train teachers, or to facilitate access to EE materials pertaining to the local fauna and flora is underdeveloped, but it exists. Willing teachers can work with informal environmental educators, biologists, technicians or NGOs to complement and explore different local EE topics.

Various EE projects have observed that the schools in the capital of São Tomé have higher student and teacher engagement during program delivery than in rural areas. Schools situated in very remote areas not only have lower engagement but also have difficulty in understanding basic concepts and the overall message of the content. It is also in these rural communities that children most often have to support their household with domestic tasks, making it very hard for them to be available for activities outside the school period. In addition, conditions in rural schools such as an excessive number of students per classroom, no electricity, and malnutrition, can make learning more difficult. The socio-economic situation on the islands clearly reflects the degree of knowledge and understanding of the communities about the importance of their unique biodiversity. It is extremely difficult to convey nature conservation messages when the basic needs of the local communities are not met.

A recent study was conducted with 361 students from both rural and urban primary schools in São Tomé to assess children’s knowledge of local biodiversity (Panisi et al. 2022). It showed that students’ wildlife knowledge improved among the male student population of impoverished rural schools, and that threatened endemic species were less often recognized than non-native species. Students in São Tomé preferred to protect species according to their attractiveness or profitability (e.g., species that can be eaten or sold). These findings reveal existing disparities in children’s knowledge about biodiversity among genders, economic backgrounds, and reasons to protect wildlife. A lack of targeted and well-planned EE actions can result in the progressive extinction of knowledge about the unique fauna and flora of the island by the younger generation, especially in more urbanized areas (Soga et al. 2018).

Despite the fact that different generations have the opportunity to experience EE through programs and activities, in many cases, ownership or follow-up is still missing. This could be the result of poor planning (e.g., time constraints, budget, personnel), type of language used (e.g., low involvement of local educators to ensure educational tools are locally adapted), and insufficient long-term engagement to create continuity. The very few existing published reports from past efforts are not comprehensive enough to prevent repeating the same errors, which may deter further development of EE in the country. Until today, the majority of EE actions happening on São Tomé and Príncipe have been conducted informally and under the responsibility and leadership of international NGOs, with engagement of local civil society. In recent years, EE has been growing and progressively led by national organizations, with several recognized Santomean educators who keep their engagement with the dissemination of conservation messages throughout the years in different projects and in their own communities and networks.

During 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was a global challenge, and education was one of the sectors that suffered the most. In the majority of developed countries, the online system was a solution to keep children and youth engaged, while in non-developed countries, where access to electricity and the internet is limited, this global crisis resulted in a complete stop of the education process. The limits to social gatherings and the lack of virtual platforms also impaired projects working with communities or other target groups. Consequently, all formal and informal EE programs and activities also came to a halt in both São Tomé and Príncipe. In 2021, the EE activities (formal and informal) are slowly starting as schools are back in session and meeting restrictions are starting to be lifted.

Looking into the Future

There are many political, economic, and social challenges on São Tomé and Príncipe that directly impact the general quality of the education system. Consequently, the subject of EE, including the focus on the importance of the islands’ local biodiversity, is less of a priority to the country. In today’s world, issues related to the environment and education are more relevant than ever. Scientific knowledge of the endemic and unique biodiversity of the islands has significantly increased in the last few decades, and the national policies are starting to see biodiversity as a development tool through tourism. Príncipe has been at the forefront of creating a model for sustainable development, with the island being recognized as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2012 and the development of the Plan for Sustainable Development “Príncipe 2030.” São Tomé seems eager to follow these steps with work being done to achieve UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status as well. However, this fragile and recent understanding of the importance of the local biodiversity is not yet evident in the education system. Without the support and leadership of non-governmental national and international organizations, the local knowledge of the environmental relevance of São Tomé and Príncipe would be still precarious.

Teachers’ feedback indicated that a national education reform paired with a dedicated budget is imperative to increase and sustain the investment on training local teachers, improving schools’ basic conditions, and promoting the inclusion of EE in all grades of the public system. EE has to be seen as a priority, and integrating children with an environmental agenda is an investment in creating future adults engaged with the conservation of the country’s natural resources. In parallel with the integration of the EE curriculum in all grades of public education, the private education system should enhance the use of their resources, and dedicate a budget to strengthen the efforts made to promote more EE activities. Integration of local partners and stakeholders and the use of materials with messages and content tailored to the local reality are also key elements to the future of EE on the islands.

Going forward, it is highly recommended that all organizations promoting EE (public, private, informal) in the country monitor and evaluate their activities, and commit to share their results to ensure the growth and advancement of EE on São Tomé and Príncipe. The development of an evaluation protocol to be used nationally could be of great benefit to accomplish such an important task. Additionally, a potential development of an online database of EE initiatives in the country could serve as an important learning tool for anyone planning or currently working in the country, and promote exchanges with other regions or educators. There are few meaningful opportunities for teachers, students, and civil society to engage and network with local and international professionals in the field of EE, as most of the communication and materials are done in languages other than Portuguese. In the last decade, the islands have hosted several events related to environmental education in Lusophone countries. These conferences and meetings, although limited in time, represent opportunities to exchange and develop ideas, establish collaborations and keep people inspired and motivated by EE.

It is evident that there is an urgent need to create a strong and well-defined joint strategy with local governmental support between public, private, formal, and informal educational institutions, to ensure a successful integration of EE on São Tomé and Príncipe, and to generate positive, long-lasting results on the islands’ biodiversity conservation. Education is the most effective way to achieve greater public support and establish solid goals to preserve the fragile and threatened biodiversity of these islands. This is urgent to ensure the future of both people and biodiversity. Past EE efforts left a legacy in transmitting knowledge, motivating and training people, and developing valuable materials that are currently addressing critical environmental issues. Present and future EE efforts will inspire and engage the next generation of national leaders to take a more critical and active role in shaping the future of the unique biodiversity of the Gulf of Guinea oceanic islands.