Rosanna Farmer has been among a few consistently at the forefront of the environmental movement in Trinidad and Tobago. She has dedicated her career to educating and sensitising the public about ecological systems, human health and environmental sustainability. Plastikeep, a company which she founded in 2007, has as its goal, getting rid of the harmful excess of plastic products (there are seven types of plastic) that are shamefully strewn throughout the length and breadth of T&T. Among the organisations she has consulted for or worked with in the environmental field are the Smelta Karavan, a mobile platform created to travel throughout T&T to inform the public on best practice development options, the EMA and UWI. She has won immense support from grassroots and community-based initiatives for her singular work, sincerity, determination, focus, and warm personable style of mediation. These experiences focused her energies on improving the local environment and minimising the ecological impacts of industrialisation on our islands.
Q: Where were you born, and where did you grow up?
A: I was born at Nurse Johnson’s Nursing Home, Dere Street, Port-of-Spain, and grew up in Blue Range, Diego Martin, days when we had no fences, no burglar proof and we climbed trees to eat our stomachs full of whatever fruit was in season. We roamed the hills, dug crystals out of caves, caught Guabines and Guppies, and washed our hair in springs, occasionally encountering a mysterious and respectful stranger smoking something with a strong and unique smell. Life was pretty natural in Trinidad in the early 70s, and we were all very connected to the environment.
Interesting surname you have…was it written that you would become an environmentalist?
I guess what we become is written somewhere, and marrying someone with the last name Farmer has played a big part in who I am today. Over the years, I have learned that my destiny is to be fearless. Fear will not serve me in this lifetime.
Anyone else in your family with the passion that you have for the environment?
My mother has always found solace in her garden, and when I was a child she never missed an opportunity to point out to me how truly beautiful Trinidad is. Her garden was a magical playhouse for us girls who pretended that her plants and their buds were all different kinds of produce which we sold in our Barbie market. We also would stand between my mother’s plants, especially the ones with large leaves, pretending that they were Carnival costumes and we were the kings and queens.
How does T&T rate in terms of environmental awareness and taking action to preserve it?
If I were to rate solely the implementation of environmental policies and programmes, my grade would honestly be quite low. I can specifically speak here to the construction of the proposed highway between Debe and Mon Desir that would pass through the Oropouche Lagoon. Strictly on environmental reasons, I completely oppose this action. For instance, there are a number of precious species whose ecosystems will be destroyed by this construction. In addition, the Armstrong Report also mentioned there will be significant destruction to the Northern Range due to the requirements to construct a nine-foot embankment which is the foundation for the highway, which will require 187,000 truckloads of aggregate. Finally, we have to understand that lagoons, mangroves and swamps serve vital roles in flood protection and nutrient removal which is essential for the protection of many marine species; many of which we rely on. However, I do feel that there are a number of valid efforts under way by numerous NGOs and concerned citizens whose actions are quite commendable but remain woefully inadequate without government backing.
Who are the people who influenced and inspired you the most, in your career and in life in general?
My parents Bernard and Ruth-Ann Brash were my first influence and are probably most responsible for who I am today. They made me strong and offered me many opportunities to think deep and to think outside the box. Sr Paul (principal of the high school I attended) taught me that running from problems did not make them go away, and at the age of 17 she forced me to face my fear, dry my eyes and look ahead. Mr Sydney Phillips, my first boss, carried me into the world of big business and through his own life story showed me that we can become anything we want. He pointed out once that persistence is the common denominator of success. Fr Gerry Pantin showed me that feelings of rejection are just illusions that we do not need to allow into our lives. We need to know our truth and be proud to live it. Jeremy Farmer, my son, has taught and continues to teach me that unconditional love is the only thing that is real. The rest is “wig,” as he would say. My partner in activism, Dr Wayne Kublalsingh, has fanned the fire felt in my belly as I entered this world of environmental protection. His single-mindedness and devotion to our social, economic and ecological wellbeing never cease to amaze and inspire me.
What schools/institutions did you attend?
I went to St Monica’s Prep, St Joseph’s Convent, Port-of-Spain, and Ryerson in Toronto, Canada. At Ryerson I earned a degree in business management and marketing.
What advice would you give to the young people of Trinidad and Tobago?
The information revolution has given us more information than we can possibly process in order to make wise decisions. The head is the navigator and the gut the compass, one cannot be valuable without the other. From my life experience the head is the “ego” (which I believe stands for ‘edging God out’), the gut is the inspiration (coming from spirit, ‘in spirit’). If it enters you in your gut do all that you can to honour and follow it. The Plastikeep project entered my gut on December 5, 2006, and I have been following God’s lead ever since. My yoga teacher, Yogi Bhajan, taught me that future generations will have to rely more on the gut than the head. Complex discourses often disguise, hide and lead us away from the truth rather than towards it. I must also warn against the use of alcohol, narcotics, and the uncritical use of pharmaceuticals. This is because these dull down the feelings in the gut.
This has resulted in a world of navigators without compasses.
What motto do you live by, and what is your recipe for success?
Sharing, openness and generosity, especially in a cosmopolitan culture such as ours. Being open to the ideas of others as well as sharing my ideas with others have always seemed to expand my success. Even in the business culture, when I share the rewards of my work it helps to expand the business and bring dynamism to it.
Who was your hero growing up and why?
My Bajan-born grandmother, Alice Ganteaume, who I loved with all my heart. She was my most favourite person in the whole world. For the first 19 years of my life she lived in a little house on the corner of Gordon and St Vincent Streets in Port-of-Spain, for which she paid $20 a month rent. Shower and flush toilet in the yard, kerosene stove (she never had an oven), and up until I was about eight or nine a block of ice was delivered in a crocus cloth to the pavement in front her house which we would chip with excitement to fit into her icebox. She lived simply and beautifully and did everything with great care. Her simplicity was very profound, and now I find myself remembering her anecdotes often and realising their value. Her love was the closest thing to unconditional that I experienced.
What philosophy regarding the environment would you like to share with our readers?
My desire is for the public to understand that the environment is not outside of us. We humans may consider ourselves the masters of this technological and innovative world, but even in the 21st century, we remain as our ancestors who left Africa as hunters-gatherers utterly dependent on this planet. We still need clean air, clean water, and food to survive and always will, so I hope that readers will understand that as citizens of this world, God is our Father, the earth is our mother, the trees, plants and animals are our brothers and sisters, and we are one.
When and how did you get into the business of saving the environment?
In January of 2006, at the end of a yoga class, I managed to overhear a conversation between two men. They were discussing the proposed introduction of two aluminium smelters in the south western peninsula of Trinidad which immediately struck a nerve deep within me and represented a turning point in my life. I have always felt a strong connection to the environment, but I realised at that moment that my life’s mission was to work as best as I could to preserve it.
What goals and or ambitions do you still have?
Your choice of the word ‘still’ implies that I have concluded my environmental activism and work towards building awareness in the nation, and this is not the case, I have only just begun. One project that I am particularly passionate about is the complete removal of styrofoam from our society through a nationwide ban on the production and use of this very harmful product as our Caribbean counterparts such as Guyana are pursuing.
What is your schedule like for the next year, and what are your plans for the future?
My project, Plastikeep, is concluding its second phase in August of 2014. I sincerely hope that we will receive funding for a third phase from the Green Fund. Our work has only just touched the surface in terms of building awareness in schools and communities throughout north west Trinidad of the gravity of our plastic problem. The impending Beverage Container Bill will help to alleviate the problem of the type one plastic which are plastic bottles, so in our application for the next phase; we are desirous of introducing a recycling machine, the first of its kind in the Caribbean region. This machine will process all other types of plastics and produce valuable materials such as plastic lumber. Given the high demand from communities and schools outside our catchment area, I would also love the opportunity to expand the project nationwide.
What was your inspiration to start Plastikeep? When was it started? Where is it based?
Back in 2006, I was working on a documentary film titled I Spy Recycling with Elspeth Duncan, which was based on a group of children who had initiated a collection and recovery of plastics programme in their school in Sangre Grande. I thought to myself, if these children could do it, then why not the rest of the country. From there arose the idea and name of Plastikeep which stands for Plastic “i” Keep. The “i” is instrumental as it represents the sense of personal responsibility we all need to embrace to become a part of the solution. I developed a business plan early the following year, which I presented to private sector players over the next year-and-a-half without success. Finally, I received funding in 2010 from the Green Fund as one of the initial applicants, and the project was launched in May of that year. Due to the Green Fund mandate, we operate solely in north west Trinidad.
Who are some of the people who are actively involved in your crusade to clean up the environment?
My team at Plastikeep comprises young, hardworking women namely project officers Sarah DeFreitas and Nadia Rudder, and education officer Nikita Mohammed. In addition, I owe much support to my wonderful young-at-heart board members at Greenlight Network, Dianne Hunt, Elizabeth Camps, Anke Kessler, Louise Fleury, Juliet Pasea, Victor Potter and Elspeth Duncan. And our office manager Gina Hatt-Carvalho. Our work could not be accomplished without the passion and diligent efforts of the numerous schools and community stakeholders that are now part of the plastic recovery and collection work.
How effective is the EMA?
This is a hard question to answer simply because I know there are many people working at the EMA who do so in earnest and who truly care to improve the environment of T&T. Unfortunately, politics plays a very important role in the decisions of the EMA and, therefore, I feel it is not as effective as it can be. In April and May of 2007, I was part of a protest action which entailed sitting outside the EMA for 40 days in order to bring awareness to the fact that the EMA had issued a flawed Certificate of Environmental Clearance for the Aluminium Smelter at La Brea. The EMA had failed to ensure that the La Brea Smelter had a safe disposal system for its toxic spent pot-lining. At that time I got to know many of the employees of the EMA and realised that most (if not all) supported our actions. The EMA is an interesting dynamic. The CEO is employed by the Government and the board is government appointed; this typically gives the line minister the illusion that he or she can order the chairman of the board and the CEO to flout proper processes and tow the Government’s agent. On the other hand, the EMA itself often pulls out its own bull dog teeth with respect to large Government back projects.
Describe yourself in two words; one beginning with R, the other with F…your initials. Resourceful and fearless.
Types of Plastics
There are seven types of plastics:
1—Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) which are soft drink and water bottles.
2—High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) which include detergent containers and caps
3—Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) pipes, gallon bottles and tiles
4—Low Density Polyethylene (SPI) grocery bags and cling wrap
5—Polypropylene (PP) yogurt, egg and other food containers
6—Polystyrene (PS) styrofoam boxes, cups and plastic cutlery; any other plastics
7—CD’s five gallon water bottles.