From Office to Ocean: A Day of Nature Immersion with BNP Paribas
At Nuwat, we believe that meaningful environmental action begins with connection. Connection to place, connection to nature and connection to the stories that shape our natural and cultural heritage.
Recently, we had the pleasure of hosting the BNP Paribas Bahrain team on a one-day nature immersion experience to Sheikh Ibrahim Island, where office walls were replaced with open horizons and structured schedules gave way to curiosity, exploration and discovery.
The journey itself set the tone. Instead of travelling by car, the team arrived to island by boat, crossing waters that have long shaped Bahrain’s history, livelihoods, and ecosystems. Upon arrival, participants were introduced to the island’s cultural and natural history, learning how human activity and nature have co-existed and sometimes collided over time.
The day unfolded through exploration. On land, the team explored the island’s terrestrial landscape, observing how plants and organisms survive in harsh, arid conditions. The focus then shifted to the shoreline, where participants quite literally got their feet wet while exploring the intertidal zone, a dynamic environment defined by constant change. Here, they learned about the species that inhabit this space and the remarkable adaptations that allow them to persist between land and sea.
Moments of learning were balanced with moments of pause. A simple picnic on the island accompanied by karak chai, home baked sweets and typical pasteries offered time to reflect, connect, and experience nature not as an abstract concept, but as a shared space that grounds and brings people together.
The experience concluded with a hands-on citizen science activity, where the team took part in collecting data on plastic pollution on offshore islands. Witnessing plastic debris in such a remote location brought home an important reality: human consumption and unsustainable behaviours leave traces everywhere, often at the expense of biodiversity and ecosystem health.
This activity marked the launch of Nuwat’s latest citizen science programme titled “Plastic Footprints”. The initiative goes beyond counting litter. Its purpose is to trace plastic items back to the brands, supply chains, and consumption systems that place them into the environment. By doing so, Plastic Footprints connects everyday choices to real ecological consequences. The experience was not only about data collection, it was about awareness. About witnessing firsthand how individual and collective decisions shape our natural landscapes, and how informed, evidence-based action can become part of the solution.
The Sheikh Ibrahim Island excursion was a curated nature-immersion experience designed by Nuwat, blending science, storytelling, culture, and community engagement. It reflects our approach to environmental education: grounded in evidence, enriched by local context, and driven by the belief that people protect what they understand and value.
We thank BNP Paribas for joining us on this journey and for their continued commitment to environmental responsibility. Experiences like these remind us that when people step outside their everyday environments and reconnect with nature, powerful shifts in perspective can occur.
Together, we can build a more informed, engaged, and nature-positive future for Bahrain.
