Greetings BT,

My fiance Rebecca and I arrive in Bonaire Saturday May 3 for her first trip and my fifth. Frankly I can't wait to see the look on her face after a week of diving this jewel in the Caribbean. Those of you that call Bonaire home are blessed.

We have another purpose during our visit that could benefit from a little BT help. Rebecca and I are the advance team for a masters program sponsored by Chapman University in Orange, California that will showcase the strides Bonaire has made with the development of sustainable energy (wind, solar) and the history of conservation with the marine park. In 2009 Chapman University will send a delegation of 20 executive masters candidates and professors to Bonaire to study best practices and meet with key business and community leaders on the island.

Rebecca is a Chapman graduate, a member of the trustees board, and is passionately involved in the university. Chapman is assembling a Masters in Business, Law and Environmental Studies, the first of its kind in the U.S. The 16-month program will visit international destinations that include Australia to study conservation efforts on the Great Barrier Reef, Norway/Iceland, Dubai for their efforts to create a carbon-free city, Costa Rica to study the rain forest, and Bonaire for sustainable energy. The trip will enhance Bonaire's image in the international environmental community and boost eco-tourism to the island.

The guidance we need from BTers includes recommendations or introductions to civic, business or academic leaders that we might meet with while we're there. This is important to us as we assemble the program for the 2009, as the course study will include presentations from local experts.

Bruce Bowker at the Carib Inn has recommended we speak with the executive director at STINAPA, and I'm looking for other suggestions. Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated!

And mind you, we do not get paid for this - this is purely a labor of love (her university, my favorite dive destination).

Best regards, and thanks to all who respond.

Randy Hall