Christmas tree in Bridgetown sends powerful environmental message
UNICEF Youth Advocate Maria Marshall’s festive tree promotes recycling and inspires creative solutions to environmental challenges
24 December 2024 - Bridgetown - This holiday season, if you're passing through the heart of Barbados' capital city, Bridgetown, you’ll likely notice a stunning array of Christmas trees spread throughout the area, each representing a school, a country, or a civil society cause. Among these festive displays, one tree stands out for its powerful message about the importance of protecting the environment.
Created by 15-year-old UNICEF Youth Advocate for the Environment, Maria Marshall, this unique tree is a product of her "Inspired by Trash to Create" initiative. The project, which partners Harrison College—where Maria is a student—and Graydon Sealy, is part of her broader environmental movement, "Blue, Green and Everything in Between."
The tree is a striking example of upcycled art, with decorations made entirely from items most people would consider waste. Egg cartons, toilet paper rolls, plastic spoons, Pringle cans, and countless plastic bottles, commonly referred to as 'PEP' bottles, were repurposed to spread holiday cheer and promote an urgent environmental message.
"We used a lot of garbage that we naturally generated to create this tree," Maria explained. "It’s kind of like an advocacy, artwork kind of thing where we are inspiring young people to be creative. It also showed them how much garbage we generate and gives them a couple of ideas to raise awareness."
The idea for the project came to Maria while working on a Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) Visual Arts assessment. Even during the festive season—a time traditionally associated with winding down—Maria was determined to find ways to make a lasting impact on her community and the environment.
Representatives from UNICEF, the Canadian High Commission for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, as well as local officials, were on hand to support the initiative. Together, they celebrated not only the creative use of recycled materials but also the message behind it: the importance of reducing waste and protecting the environment.
As Maria highlighted, the project is also about challenging negative perceptions of youth. "Youth usually get a bad rap these days because all we’re seeing is a lot of bad stuff out there on the internet. So I think if we put out some good examples, it would inspire people to do more positive things for the environment."
Her tree is more than just a holiday decoration—it’s a call to action for young people to think creatively and take responsibility for the world around them. By reimagining waste, Maria is showing that even the smallest actions can contribute to a larger environmental movement, one that celebrates both the holiday season and the planet we all share.
