Student presents weather report on Met Day
Between June to November, meteorologists–both local and international–become household names, but outside the hurricane season, interest in the daily weather report wanes considerably. But what Belizeans may not realise is that climate conditions on the other side of the world can affect our environment here in Belize just as our everyday habits can have long term impacts on global resources. To raise awareness about such issues, as well as encourage students to consider meteorology as a career option, earlier this year the National Met Service launched a contest complete with a televised first prize. News Five’s Kendra Griffith reports.
Kendra Griffith, Reporting
In commemoration of World Meteorological Day, today students visiting the Weather Bureau in Ladyville learnt all about climate and the environment from resident experts.
Frank Tench, Forecaster
“This year the theme: Polar Meteorology and its Global Implications stems from the fact that the nations of the world are going to pay particular interest in the next two years about the effects of weather in the polar areas of the world. But what happens with the weather in the polar climates has implications for the rest of the world.”
And while their international partners study the state of polar ice caps, here at home the National Met Service is focussing educating Belize’s youths. This year the department held the first ever “Aspiring Youth Meteorologists Competition.”
Rudolph Williams, Hydrologist
“It’s to bring awareness to climate change and we want to get young people especially involved in the meteorology field and we want to broaden the pool of professionals that we have to choose from when we are recruiting meteorologist.”
“The students had to make a five minute presentation on either of two topics: Adapting to Climate Change or Coping with Water Scarcity.”
Twenty-two students from the Corozal, Belize, and Cayo districts entered the competition and when the judging was over, thirteen year old St Catherine’s Academy student Lexia Simmons was declared the winner.
Lexia Simmons, Winner, Young Meteorologist Competition
“I spent two weeks preparing for it, I read a lot of U.N.D.P. books stating different water scarcity stuff that I had to do for the presentation. I went on the internet. My dad helped me a lot with the stuff also.”
Kendra Griffith
“Were you surprised when you won?”
Lexia Simmons
“Yes, I was very surprised when I won because I was going up against fourth formers and third formers and that just wasn’t—I didn’t think I would have won.”
Second place went to Herlinda Martinez of Belmopan Baptist High School, while Kori Dawson of Friends Boys School in Belize City took third.
Kori Dawson, 3rd Place
“I only had the week to do this presentation and the bad luck is my internet, it didn’t work, so I had to go to Lord’s Bank at my aunt’s house. So we had to be back and forth, back and forth, doing a lot of research and stuff and we managed to get it done.”
Rudolph Williams
“Lexia won a P.C., a fully loaded P.C. courtesy of Global Technologies and PACT, a digital camera courtesy of GS-Com, also she got a class tour of the National Meteorological Service paid for by the coordinating committee.”
Included in that prize package is the opportunity to host the weather report, something that the first former is looking forward to.
Lexia Simmons
“I’m feeling good; I really want to do it. I really want to get up there and see how to show people the weather and go over TV. The TV part is fun too, so yeah.”
This afternoon, an excited but slightly nervous Lexia showed up at Bel-Caribe Communications studios to record her report.
[Lexia practicing weather report]
Both Lexia and Kori say that since entering the competition, they have been transformed into conservationists, which was exactly what the met service is counting on.
Rudolph Williams
“We are hoping that the younger people will be impacted positively and start to make some changes in the way they behave.”
Kori Dawson
“I used to waste a lot of water, especially when washing dishes and stuff, so now that teaches me to use a pan or a stopper to hold the water and use a little bit of water.”
Lexia Simmons
“Every time my sister takes forever in the bathroom, I tell her, Kalem, you know that you’re wasting water right? You now you can save a lot of people if you stop wasting so much water. And my parents, I usually tell them full up the container to wash dishes, don’t go and keep rinsing it. And they kinda get mad at me because I am so down their throats, but I really believe that doing that can really help a lot of people.”
Kendra Griffith reporting for News Five.
