| Earth Sea and Sky - VasilikosEarth Sea & Sky: Ionian Nature Conservation
Earth Sea & Sky is a conservation organisation network for Ionian Non-Governmental Organisations working to conserve the flora and fauna of the Greek Ionian.
Our principle objective is to protect the nesting beaches of the Loggerhead turtle and the natural habitats of all wildlife contained within the National Park of Zakynthos.
Our belief in 'conservation by education' means that we provide what is now the only Wildlife Information Centre in Zakynthos, at Gerakas Beach. We estimate that we have 5,000 visitors to the centre each summer, from all over the world.
Earth Sea & Sky organises volunteer placements in Greece, arranges volunteer activities in the Gerakas area over the summer months, does a great deal of Public Awareness work at the Information Centre, liaises with local Zakynthians, and visits schools in the UK to talk about sea turtles. In the past we have arranged the airlift of maimed sea turtles to Sea Life Centres in the UK, and organised the first ever 6-month long clean up of the coast line and forest along the entire length of Laganas Bay.
ESS works in co-operation with other NGOs, such as Archelon (the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece), Medasset (Meditteranean Association to Save the Sea Turtle), the National Marine Park of Zakynthos, Archipelagos Coastal and Marine management, and Cephallonia National Marine Park Authority.
Yannis Vardakastanis has been a conservationist since 1991, and he set up Earth Sea & Sky in 1993. He has been steadily working to protect Gerakas where he grew up from tourism development. He has directed his energy into bringing conservation and sustainable tourism together, culminating with Ionian Eco Villagers and Nature World Travel. In 2005 he won a First Choice Responsible Tourism Award for his work.
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