By Tangerine Clarke
Maria Marshall, an 11-yearold
Barbadian, environmentalist,
has made quite a splash on
the world stage, becoming the
youngest award-winning filmmaker
in her homeland, capturing
the attention of Prime
Minister, Mia Amore Mottley
and actor Orlando Bloom.
Little Maria, whose motto
is “Reduce, reuse, recycle and
repair” helped her win the
UNDP Small Island Future
Fest 2019, and is the recipient
of the 2019 NIFCA National
Independence Festival of Creative
Arts Award for her production,
“Little Thoughts on Big
Matters,” in an interview with
Orlando Bloom, the UNICEF
goodwill ambassador, said she
was excited to be chatting with
the actor.
Bloom, congratulated Maria,
and asked her how she felt about
being the youngest award-winning
film in her country. She
responded by saying, “I am very
proud of myself that I have
achieved that award at such a
young age.”
The interview that was conducted
Caribbean L 14 ife, December 4-10, 2020
on Nov. 17 ahead of Universal
Children’s Day on Nov.
20, gave Maria an opportunity
to represent Barbados, which
she described as the natural
beauty seen in pictures, on
the Internet, and showcased
by tour guides. She also celebrated
Barbadians as very nice
people.
Asked to talk about herself,
the gleeful young lady shared,
“my family consists of my
mom, dad, two cats, Mimi and
Raj, and pet turtle, Turts.”
She told Bloom that before
COVID-19, she had hung out
and played with friends, but
due to the pandemic, they are
all now distant from each other
afraid that they would contract
the virus. “We are very distant
and lonely, even in school,” she
shared.
During the interview with
Bloom for the Voices of Youth,
UNICEF campaign, Marie
expressed her dismay at the
way in which a passenger
traveling alongside her mother’s
car tossed a plastic bottle
out of a window. She could not
understand why recycled items
were not being disposed of in a
proper manner.
“Because my mom is such a
great driver we did not get into
an accident, or anything like
that since she had to swerve
not to hit the object. Then I
had a moment to think. Is this
normal in Barbados, and why
do people think this is a great
idea to dispose of their plastics
and other items in this way?”
she questioned.
This action sparked the idea
to create her YouTube Channel
“Little Thoughts on Big
Matters,” that shows children
and adults, “how their ideas
can make a great impact on
our environment,” she said,
explaining to Bloom that she
came up with the title herself,
that prompted him to complement
her as a clever wordsmith.
“Because of COVID-19, I
can’t produce as many videos
Screenshot of Maria Marshall during Voices of Youth UNICEF
campaign interview with actor Orlando Bloom, UN
goodwill ambassador. UNICEF
due to my school schedule. It
limits my efforts to socialize
and develop more content for
my ‘Reduce, reuse, recycle and
repair’ platform,” said the precocious
young girl, who added
she was also afraid of catching
the virus.
“I am looking forward to
socializing and gathering
information to create more
videos on how to protect the
environment after COVID-19,”
she said.
Maria said if she were in
charge of the United Nations
she would change how people
think about the earth and the
environment. “We only have
one earth so we need to protect
it,” she added.
Prime Minister Motley has
complimented the Harrison
College first form student for
her activist work, during a
conversation about the importance
of preserving the ocean
,according to reports.
Eleven-year-old Barbadian
environmentalist wows world
Bill de Blasio
Mayor
Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc
Commissioner