Creating a link between actors from Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyana, promote local initiatives and encourage new cooperation : this is the whole spirit of the “cooperation breakfast” organized by Karib Horizon. The latest edition took place in Guadeloupe And led the participants into an original and inspiring setting: the “Jaden Kreyol” led by the association Rezilyans 971.
Photo credits: Angela Fontana/LaGuilde2025
A territorial animation meeting
The morning sun filters through the leaves, the air is already warm, voices mingle around cups of "té péyi". "cooperation breakfast" ", organized by Karib Horizon within the framework of the COREOM program – Overseas regional cooperation, begins in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. It's not a formal meeting: it's a moment designed to create connections. Institutions, associations, project leaders, teachers, citizens : the profiles are varied, but all have in common the desire to get to know each other better and to exchange ideas around a time of openness to others, this time in the heart of nature.
“Our role is to bring the region to life by creating simple and accessible spaces where everyone can share their experiences.”
Mathieu Balagne,
Karib Horizon Coordinator
For Karib Horizon, choosing this place is not trivial: territorial animation takes on its full meaning when it is based on concrete initiatives, led by local stakeholders, based on their needs, and serving the territory.
Rézilyans 971, popular education by Jaden Kreyol
At the heart of the meeting, Fiona Roche, founder of Rézylians 971, presented her action: raise awareness of biodiversity, provide educational support for young and old and pass on the heritage of the Creole garden.
Rézilyans 971 is a Guadeloupean association based in Sainte-Anne, whose mission is to promote sustainable lifestyles through concrete actions in Guadeloupe and the Caribbean. Faced with the environmental, social and climatic challenges specific to island territories, Rézilyans has set itself the mission of raising awareness among citizens, experimenting with ecological alternatives (permaculture, eco-construction, recovery, energy and food autonomy) and increasing collective resilience.
The association also carries the idea of a open eco-place : a space where young and old can meet, learn, experiment, share, produce local food, and reconnect with nature in a framework of mutual respect and solidarity. “Developing resilience means enabling the inhabitants of the archipelago to be more autonomous in the face of crises (climatic, economic, social), to reduce dependence on imports, to restore local ecosystems, and to reaffirm traditional knowledge (medicinal plants, food gardens) within a collective approach.”
Fiona – Founder of Rézilyans 971
“We only preserve what we love,
We love what we know.
"The Creole garden is a colonial legacy, but it is also a tool for the future: self-sufficiency, food security, adaptation to climate change," she added.
An immersion in the heart of the garden
After the exchanges of knowledge, all the participants launched into a guided tour discovering the many plants, including:
- moringa, “tree of life” with nutritional virtues;
- gwo tym And aloe vera, pillars of traditional pharmacopoeia;
- Guadeloupe peas, known for their natural fertilization and plant proteins;
- calabash tree, transformed into everyday craft objects.
The walk was punctuated by unexpected discoveries: the little-known role of bats in pollination, the importance of living soils, and the spiritual uses of certain plants.
Cross-perspectives of the participants
Over the course of the discussions, a common conviction emerged: the Creole garden is much more than an agricultural space, it is an educational, cultural and cooperative tool. For Aude, from the rectorate, it represents another way of learning, capable of connecting children to their history, biodiversity and their Caribbean geography. According to Caroline, it is about “becoming an actor, creative, conscious, rather than a simple consumer”. Damien Bauchau, from Émergence Caraïbes (an association responsible for supporting COREOM graduates), emphasized that cooperation begins here, in the ability to promote local practices and make them levers for the entire region.
Several participants also recalled the memorial dimension of Jaden Kreyol: When I discovered these plants, "I realized that they were already in my grandmother's garden. It's a part of our history that must be preserved and passed on." This is in line with the objective of Rézilyans 971, and with Fiona's advocacy: "Preserving biodiversity is not a luxury, it's a necessity. Jaden Kreyol teaches us that we already have the solutions here, in our territory."
These moments of immersion are not only convivial, they are also strategic: they allow you toidentify stakeholders, strengthen bonds of trust and bring out new synergies“Territorial animation means supporting the process, providing the confidence needed to take a step forward and opening up prospects for cooperation,” insists Mathieu Balagne.
From local to regional: a tool for cooperation and development for tomorrow?
One question remains open: How can Jaden Kreyol become a tool for cooperation with our Caribbean neighbors?
Because if the garden already plays a local role - raising awareness, educating, reconnecting residents with their environment - it can also become a regional anchor pointOther Caribbean territories share these practices of food gardens: exchanging on their promotion could fuel cooperation in the areas of agroecology, popular education and climate resilience.
As recalled Mathieu Balagne, quoting Édouard Glissant: it is about “Acting in one’s place, thinking with the world.” A phrase which resonates particularly in this Creole garden: cultivate our local knowledge while opening bridges to the Caribbean.
FOCUS: Territorial animation, the key to new cooperative synergies
As part of COREOM, Karib Horizon (the first Regional Multi-Stakeholder Network – RRMA in the Caribbean) operates in Guadeloupe, Martinique, and French Guiana to inform, train, and connect stakeholders. It also carries out strategic actions such as strategic monitoring of funding opportunities: “Many associations do not have the resources to monitor. We provide this relay role, by distributing calls for projects and explaining the conditions of access,” says Mathieu Balagne, coordinator of Karib Horizon. For him, territorial animation within the framework of COREOM goes far beyond the organization of events: it becomes a strategic tool to build capacity and create synergies. In fact, territorial animation also aims to increase the capacity of solidarity actors. "Organizations that had never thought of getting involved in cooperation are now considering taking the plunge."
These moments of immersion are not only convivial, they are also structuring: they allow you toidentify stakeholders, strengthen bonds of trust and bring out new synergies. "Territorial animation is the link that connects local action to regional impact. What we do here makes sense on a Caribbean scale."
Moments of exchange during a cooperation breakfast, Guadeloupe. Photo credit: Karib Horizon_2025