TEMES S.A.

Preserving and highlighting the Messinian biodiversity and protecting the important habitats and endangered species in Messinia, through protection programs in cooperation with NGOs and through the operation of Navarino Natura Hall.

International academic community, local community, private sector, guests at Costa Navarino coming from around the world.

2011 - today.

TEMES together with Stockholm University, the Academy of Athens, the Hellenic Ornithological Society (the Greek partner of BirdLife International), the Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association (HELMEPA), Organization Earth and Navarino Foundation, created the Navarino Natura Hall exhibition center in Costa Navarino.

The Navarino Natura Hall combines modern, interactive technologies, slide shows and films about the surrounding habitats with on-line updates on current Navarino Environmental Observatory projects and information about how the research is carried out. The purpose of this center is to inform visitors and locals about the uniqueness and beauty of the natural habitats of Messinia, familiarize them with environmental issues and offer them an entertaining and educational experience. Special educational programs for children, created together with the University of Peloponnese, are carried out in the center combining games with knowledge (more than 2,000 school children have participated so far in the programs).

TEMES has also launched an extensive monitoring and protection program for the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) in cooperation with Archelon, the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece. The program annually records the Caretta caretta population while mapping, monitoring and protecting the nests using GPS technology. A detailed action plan ensures that eggs and hatchlings are protected until their final journey to the sea. TEMES has also partnered with the Societas Hellenica Herpetologica, to protect the habitat of the only European population of the African chameleon in Gialova lagoon. The program includes nest recording and protection, monitoring of the hatching process, transportation of the hatchlings to nearby shrubs, population recording and campaigns to raise public awareness about this fascinating species.

Stockholm University, the Academy of Athens, the Hellenic Ornithological Society (the Greek partner of BirdLife International), the Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association (HELMEPA), Organization Earth, Archelon, Societas Hellenica Herpetologic.

A specially designated team of TEMES Associates are responsible for the day-to-day running, the educational activities and the synergies taking place at Navarino Natura Hall.

Costa Navarino, Messinia

Through Navarino Natura Hall the visitors and the local community of Messinia get a unique insight into the rich and diverse environment of Messinia, together with information on current environmental protection issues. Visitors learn how they can contribute to the worldwide effort for environmental protection through small changes in their everyday behavior. Since 2011, the more than 2,000 students from local schoolshave learned about the rich flora and fauna of their region and how to protect it. At Navarino Natura Hall visitors have access to the latest scientific results of the research programs being carried out at Navarino Environmental Observatory (NEO). The sea turtle protection program, a result of the cooperation between TEMES and ARCHELON, is a significant effort to protect and preserve a species with great importance for the area, whereas guests are informed about the species and how to co-exist harmonically with Caretta caretta.

Through Navarino Natura Hall, TEMES has found valuable partners in the effort to materialize the company’s vision: to place Messinia, through the development of Costa Navarino, among the top sustainable tourism destinations worldwide. Located within Costa Navarino, Navarino Natura Hall operates as a central point for promoting the unique biodiversity and natural beauty of Messinia, encouraging our visitors to discover it. The successful application of the sea turtle protection program proves once again that a sustainable touristic development can play a significant role in the protection of the natural environment and biodiversity.