Los abuelos y los tiburones de la Isla Holbox

In May 2023, our team finally presented our children’s book, “Los Abuelos y los Tiburones de Isla Holbox” (The Grandfathers and the Sharks of Holbox Island), to the children of Chiquilá and Holbox, which fills us with joy. We had a blast. Both kids and adults were excited to read about it. Our book shares stories of different sharks and sawfish found near Holbox Island. The tales we gathered were from elder fishers of Holbox Island. We are using interdisciplinary science to study sharks on the island, and this information is part of our research activities. We wanted to communicate our science to the young generations and explore the idea of developing a kids´ book. This book was created solely by Latinas who have a passion for communicating science to broad audiences Dr Nadia Rubio, leader of this project; Deborah de la Fuente (illustrator); Mirna A. Cisneros Fernández (language editor), Martha Chico (book edition); Marisol Rueda Flores (collaborator and editor).

Click on the image above to view the book online. Illustrations by Deborah de la Fuente

The workshops developed on May 2023 on Holbox Island also had a special guest, SOSF Storytelling Photography Grant 2021 winner Acacia Johnson. Acacia talked to the kids about her work in the Arctic and Antarctic and showed her photographs of the animals that live there. The kids learned about new marine animals like penguins, walruses, and seals. All were very excited.

Special thanks to our colleagues from the Holbox and Chiquilá communities:

On Chiquilá, we collaborate with the kids’ group los “Chipes Dorados” from the program “Sal A Pajarear Yucatán (Península)”. This group of kids trains to be birdwatchers from a very young age and always participates in environmental education activities. We thank the leaders of this group for their support, Francisca Antele and Roberto Domínguez.

Vincente Cáceres, one of the fishers who inspired the book's characters receives his copy. Photo © Nadia Rubio | Mar Sustenable

On Holbox, we collaborate with the kids´ group “Charranes Mínimos” from the program “Sal A Pajarear Yucatán (Península)”, which promotes environmental education activities related to bird identification and observation. We thank the volunteer instructors “Eduardo Pacheco Cetina” “Adela López” and “Francisco Cab” from the Sal a Pajarear Program, who collaborate with Mar Sustentable to carry out environmental education events on the Island.

Dr Nadia Rubio (left) and one of the fisher's who has inspired this story, Carmelo Sabatini (right). Photo © Nadia Rubio | Mar Sustenable

Many thanks to CONANP Yum Balam for their support for this event. The event took place at the Isla Holbox community museum. This is a CONANP space where environmental education activities are carried out.