Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort, Fiji Debuts Connect with Kids Program

Conceived by the resort's resident marine biologist and outreach coordinator Johnny Singh, this new program will be offered every Friday afternoon and will allow families to embark on an off-site tour where visiting children are invited to join local primary school children of similar age groups in their classroom and participate in that day's curriculum.

“One of the beautiful outcomes of traveling is exploring and learning firsthand about different cultures and people,” said Bart Simpson, general manager of Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort, Fiji. “At Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort, we pride ourselves on immersing our guests in traditional Fijian culture and hospitality. By offering the Connect with Kids program, we hope to reinforce the importance of traveling to our young guests, broaden their curiosity, and ideally, make a friend along the way.”

While traveling to the nearby school, families will participate in a language learning game to teach children how to say common phrases in Fijian, such as “hello,” “thank you,” and how to count to ten. Upon arrival, each visiting child will be paired with a local child of their own age, and together they will participate in recreational and educational activities, such as a short game of soccer or volleyball, and get a taste of traditional Fijian cuisine with afternoon snacks like tapioca cake and other assorted local sweets.

Upon departure, the local school children will bid farewell to the young guests by singing the Fijian national anthem “God Bless Fiji.” After the visit, Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort encourages children to send handwritten letters to each other through a pen pal program. As part of the program, the resort will provide envelopes for the local children, collect the letters each week, and send them with an update attached about the charity work done in the school. In partnership with the Savusavu Community Foundation, the resort also will accept voluntary donations for the school outreach program from guests during their stay or at checkout.

As the resort's outreach coordinator, Johnny Singh spearheads community outreach, visits local schools to talk to the students about the importance of the coral reefs in their community, organizes visits to the resort from local schools, and shows the students the resort's sustainable practices firsthand. Singh also runs various innovative and educational programs that introduce guests to Fiji's cultural heritage and the resort's environmental initiatives and sustainability practices. For example, he regularly leads guests on guided snorkel and dive trips to demonstrate how helping improve the environment translates into a healthier planet for everyone. He also leads nature excursions, such as hikes in the rainforest, tours of the mangrove forests around nearby Nawi Island, tidal flat exploration on the beach, and the local seafood market. In addition, he spearheads various ecological projects, such as a mangrove planting program, giant clam farm, coral farm, and reef surveys. Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort is the only resort in Fiji (possibly anywhere) to have a fulltime marine biologist on staff. He has been an integral, important and unique part of the guests' experience for more than eight years.

For more information or reservations, please visit www.fijiresort.com.