World Oceans Day: PONANT and Maud Fontenoy Foundation raise awareness among our youngest on protecting the planet.
Because it’s important to reach new generations and make children aware of environmental protection issues from an early age, PONANT has joined forces with the Maud Fontenoy Foundation to help run its Ocean Explorers club for children. In total this summer, 17 cruises will offer children aged 4 to 13 a programme of activities dedicated to the ocean protection theme.
Raising awareness of oceans protection from an early age
The Maud Fontenoy Foundation is providing PONANT’s activity teams with fun educational kits, activity sheets and videos highlighting why oceans need to be protected. From creative activities (drawing, painting, a giant map of the world to colour in, etc.) to meditation initiation sessions, the programme is very varied. And from 2023, it will also include fun educational workshops on the water cycle, biodiversity, astronomy, and geology.
In July and August 2022, a total of 17 cruises will have the Ocean Explorers club for children aged 4 to 13 on Le Lyrial, Le Bougainville, Le Jacques-Cartier, Le Bellot and Le Ponant. Maud Fontenoy herself will be aboard Le Lyrial for the cruise to the Greek islands.
Excursions and talks
Children aged 4-13 will have the opportunity to do excursions such as watersports, beach games and swimming, treasure hunts, and even guided tours. For larger groups, a naturalist guide will join the team running the sessions and give a talk on local fauna and flora.
Kit de bienvenue
Year-round, on all the company’s ships and voyages, children will receive a welcome kit that includes reusable water bottles, pencils and games, plus a book by Maud Fontenoy suited to each age group with key messages that are dear to the Foundation.
The Maud Fontenoy Foundation
For more than 20 years, Maud Fontenoy has been an advocate for safeguarding the environment and more specifically the oceans and coasts. Her fight - to inform and raise awareness among as many people as possible of the need to protect the planet. In 2008, this French sailor set up the Maud Fontenoy Foundation. Operating in France and internationally, it organises awareness-raising activities for the general public and young generations, with the support of scientific partners and the French Ministry of National Education for which it runs the Sea Education programme and the relaunched Sea Classes. Every year, more than 700,000 children benefit from these programmes.