The Ministry of Housing, in association with the National Habitat III Committee, is hosting a series of activities from Saturday, October 3, until Monday, October 5, to celebrate World Habitat Day.

Under the theme: Public Spaces for All, the activities begin with a mini Home Building Exhibition in Heroes Square, the City, on Saturday, October 3, from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.

The presentations will be: Using Alternative Energy Sources in the Home, to be held at 10:00 a.m.; Using Cement Board in Construction at 11:30 a.m.; and Small Container Gardening for Urban Spaces at 1:00 p.m.

Students from primary schools within the Bridgetown area will also be invited to a Sidewalk Chalk Art Event which begins at 2:00 p.m., and prizes will be given to participants. On Sunday, October 4, there will be a guided walking tour of public spaces in Bridgetown from 4:00 until 6:00 p.m.

It begins at Queen???s Park and will visit several locations within The City which have been developed, including Church Village Green, Heroes??? Square, Jubilee Gardens and the Post Office Amphitheatre, before returning to Queen???s Park.??The tour is free to the public, however, participants need to register by contacting the Urban Development Commission at 417-1420. Tour guides will be Maurice Greenidge and Trevor Marshall.

The activities will culminate with a panel discussion on Monday, October 5, in the Science Lecture Theatre, University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, at 7:00 p.m. The featured topic is: Social and Economic Implications for Housing over the Next Twenty Years, and panellists will be Dr. Tonya Haynes, Kelly G. Hunte, Jonathan Lashley (Ph.D.), Dr. Grenville Phillips, and Dr. Anthony Wood.

World Habitat Day is held annually to recognise the basic right of all humanity to adequate shelter, and to encourage grassroots action toward ending poverty housing.

The celebration is also being held in conjunction with the creation of the Habitat III proposal, which initially plans the next 20 years in urban and rural development in Barbados. A team from Barbados will present these plans at Habitat III, a major global summit which will be held in Quito, Ecuador, from October 17 to 20, 2016.

jamal.hall@barbados.gov.bb

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