Introduction

The Marine Foundation International Training Centre (ITC) is being set up to train all of the executives and staff who will run the various Marine Foundation facilities around the world.

The worldwide Marine Foundation facilities will initially consist of 5 regional headquarters, each of which will establish and manage a growing number of Marine Camps throughout their regions. As the Marine Foundation grows in strength and contents, other facilities will be added in each region; like full-time schools and universities.

The basic functions of the ITC would therefore include:

• The creation of training programs ranging from classroom lectures to online videos and webinars, to hands-on internships.
• The constant review of existing material and the continual search for new ways and means to ensure that the latest techniques and materials are always being used.
• The delivery of those training programs and the management of the results being obtained by the participants.
• The follow-up of previously trained executives and staff to correct any aspects of their skills where necessary and to upgrade those skills with the added material when appropriate.

A Combined Facility

The International Training Centre (ITC) will initially be training people from two types of facilities: Marine Camps and Regional HQ Operations. A vital part of the training regime will be the direct involvement of trainees in the running of the type of posts and jobs for which they are being trained. This will be accomplished by bringing them into the ITC to participate in internships.

Internships will involve the trainees actually taking over and performing the jobs for which they are being trained – under supervision, of course. It is only by actually doing the jobs that their performance can be properly monitored and corrected. That way, we can ensure that they will perform with optimum results when they return to their own facilities.

It follows, therefore, ITC will include a fully operational HQ facility and a fully operational Marine Camp facility. Trainees would, therefore, be able to take up various posts within these facilities and run them (under supervision) for however long it takes to bring them to the point of utter competence.

The ITC will, therefore, be built on the same site as the Oceania Regional HQ and the first Marine Camp for Australia. It is currently proposed that this combined facility be built on the Queensland Sunshine Coast. The three facilities on the site will be:

• The International Training Centre: where all of the training programs are created and produced in their various forms (documents, videos, online training, webinars, internships, etc.) The ITC Management Facility will also handle the logistics of bringing staff in for training and assigning them to the various internships, plus monitoring their ongoing performance.
• The Oceania Regional Headquarters: where all of the various facilities throughout the region will be created, set up, managed and monitored. This would include the fund-raising necessary to expand into new areas and to set up new facilities, as well as running various revenue-generating and Corporate/Government PR activities designed to cover the ongoing expenses and the operations cost of both the ITC and the HQ itself.
• The Marine Camp for the local area: where children can attend classes and programs that will begin to prepare them for the ability to survive in the future. This will include learning how to produce high-quality food and water, whilst also finding out how to reverse some of the ecological disasters that will otherwise destroy the future generations on this planet.

The Site Plan Concept

Each of the three operations (ITC, HQ and Camp) will need their own physical facilities.

It is envisaged that the overall site would consist of a large land area in the order of 25-50 hectares. Ideally, the site would contain a freshwater stream that could be used to fill an artificial lake (with a waterfall) which will contribute a central point for the setup of the Executive Presentation, Corporate / Public Accommodation / Dining, and other public-access buildings.

The Marine Camp itself (where the children attend classes, sleep, eat and play), should be set back from this area, as the children must be kept isolated from the rest of the operation (particularly the public areas) for tranquility, security and safety reasons. Visiting VIPs will be able to see the operating camp on official guided tours only.

Any agricultural activities (like farming, aquaponics, aquaculture, etc.) would be housed in separate buildings designed for catering to the special needs of each activity. These facilities should be accessible to the children as part of their learning experience and should be positioned such that they do not have a negative impact on the aesthetic value of the environment – particularly the public access areas. They would be accessible, of course, as part of the orientation program for visiting VIPs.

The pride of place for the site (right on the lake) would be the HQ Presentation facility consisting of an auditorium where the Marine Foundation story can be presented to visiting government and corporate officials using high-tech presentation equipment. It would also include high-class dining facilities and accommodations for Corporate Team-Building and other revenue-generating programs. Other ways to generate income utilizing these facilities would be family or professional events such as wedding receptions, seminars etc… And when a facility is not reserved, it could be offered as a high-class resort hotel for paying guests. The more people will see what we are doing, the easier it will be to get donations and sponsorships.

The remaining activities would be largely administrative, including the ITC and HQ management and operational activities, and could all be run by one central administrative building with various office spaces spread out at different locations to better meet the guests’ needs. This building should be designed to present an excellent impression to the first-time visitor to the site. It should be placed such way that it will be the first set of buildings the visitor sees on arrival. The style should be appropriate to the local environment.

The overall concept, therefore, is to have an impressive administrative building as the entry point. The public who are arriving to participate in Corporate/Government PR activities, or paid services of various sorts, would then be directed to the Presentation/Accommodation facility by the lake. Children arriving to attend a Marine Camp would be taken to their camp to settle in and get oriented.

The Functions of the ITC

The overall concept is that the ITC will ensure that the executives and staff of all Marine Foundation facilities around the world received the appropriate training with regular updates modules so that they are constantly up to point to perform their duties in the best fashion possible and to produce the best results that are needed in their local area.

There are various methods by which a staff trainee can learn what they need to know:

• Documents and manuals that will be available for study at their own local facility, including detailed job descriptions and reference materials for each post.
• Online training in the form of a series of presentations (both static and video) that will target their particular job or more general employment activities.
• Live online webinars that are moderated by ITC personnel who are trained to deliver the material they are presenting. These sessions will be two-way ones so that participants can ask questions and contribute to the overall learning experience.
• Internships at the ITC, where employees are brought into apply what they have learned in real environments. They will intern until they have proved that they are totally competent.

All this implies that the materials for these training exercises need to be researched, created and packaged for distribution. This is one of the main functions of the ITC.

Environmental Impact

The entire site will be set up to be aesthetically pleasing to the visitor, featuring native trees and plants with wide expanses of grass. The focal point will be the lake, but beyond that, the Marine Camp and all of the agricultural facilities will be positioned in natural forest settings.

Power will be generated using the latest solar and wind technologies (and any other eco-friendly systems that become available) and enough energy will be stored in high-tech batteries for use in off-generation periods. Surplus power will be sold back to the local power production entity.

All farm machinery and tools, where practical and possible, will be battery powered to minimize carbon emissions. All road vehicles will be either fully electric or at least hybrid.

Where practical and possible, all buildings will be constructed in such a way as to take advantage of the natural light/heat/cooling offered by Mother Nature.

High-quality organic food will be produced on the site in various forms for training purposes, but will also be available to supply some of the dietary needs of Marine Camp participants, executive/resort dining, staff meals, etc. Any surplus beyond that will be available to sell to the local community as an added revenue-generating source.

Community Impact

It is important that the ITC and all its associated facilities do not conflict in any actual or perceived manner with any other activity in the local environment. Extensive surveying and local PR presentations will be conducted before the site location is finalized (and after it has been established) to make sure this happens.

The general rule is that the Marine Foundation should be seen as a positive addition to the local community. Specialized staff should not, therefore, be “poached” from local businesses, but local people should be hired where otherwise possible.

If it seems that there may be some business conflict with a local operator, this situation must be addressed so that an amicable solution can be found that is mutually acceptable for instance by joint venture agreement.

Free tours of the facility and free seminars on nutrition and organic food production will be made available to locals and visitors to maintain a good level of understanding of what we are doing and how.

Conclusion

The International Training Centre, along with the Oceania HQ and the on-site Marine Camp will be built on 25-50 hectares of sub-tropical forest land located in the richly fertile hills district of the Queensland Sunshine Coast.

The Marine Foundation staff from around the world will learn how to perform their duties through a combination of written material and online training/webinars created and packaged by the ITC. The final polishing and perfecting of their job skills will be accomplished through completion of practical tasks in the real environment of an ITC internship.