At TIDE, a solid partnership and cooperation with our stakeholder communities is very important. Each year, TIDE embarks on fund-raising to be able to assist families by easing some of their school related expenses. Some years we are blessed to raise more funding than others. Over the years, recipients have benefited from having their tuition paid, some have gotten uniforms, while others have received textbooks. Just as the extent of TIDE’s aid has varied, so too has the number of young adults being assisted, in a given year. One thing that does remain steadfast, is the appreciation expressed, for this initiative.

For the school year 2018-2019, we are most grateful to the Mass Audubon organization for their funding assistance and partnership. This year, our scholarship progamme took effect in the form of providing 44 high school children, with the assorted text books of their classes. Our program supplies children enrolled in all the high schools within the Toledo district, from 1^st form through to 4^th. On Friday, the 17^th of August, 2018, TIDE held its parent/student meeting, and in this meeting the attendees were reminded of the criteria and obligations that come along with their application acceptance. We want our recipients to become familiar with the concept of ‘giving back’ and citizenship, so all are required to complete 60 hours of community service during the course of their school year. Our recipients are also urged to conduct themselves in a respectable manner and to really apply themselves in the learning process, thereby increasing their chances of successful completion.

TIDE makes a concerted effort to provide such educational assistance because the organization realizes that many of the families in Toledo have limited income, and many are dependent on the south’s natural resources in order to sustain themselves. Many of our teenage recipients come from fisher-folk families, from subsistence farming families. We foster better relations with our community stakeholders, but we also invest in the next generation by better their chances of success in educational pursuits. These young people grow into adults with a wider array of skills, skills which may allow them to earn a living for themselves and their families through alternate livelihoods.