By Jennifer Smith | Project Leader
Real long term biodiverse reforestation on the Equator is a process that takes several years to grow a robust forest full of trees capable of surviving and and giving the benefits for which they are so cherished and even taken for granted. In our case, we make sure to pay local Costa Rican people working in our tree nurseries and in the deforested farms doing the important work of producing and planting and caring for more rainforest trees. In turn, communities become more aware of the benefits of planting trees as well as directly profit from the work. Regular maintenance of the trees gives families a constant income stream which they can use to better their lives. They can improve infrastructure in their homes and community and even go so far as to start new small businesses and eco tourism projects to diversify opportunities for empowerment and build self esteem.
An amazing example is the waterfall project supported by our organization by funding the planting and care of 3560 trees so far. These trees are still under paid maintenance and more than 12 different people are earning money as a result of the long term committment to care of the growing forest. The family owning the land shared by 4 brothers continues to add infrastructure to their amazing waterfall tourism project and each month that passes results in more people visiting the farm and immersing themselves in nature.
We are currently working on educational signs and info to include along the trails in order to draw people's attention to the trees that have been sponsored here by businesses and individuals alike. Replicating our work in new communities spreads the tree planting money around and each time we plant a new project and pay people to do the work for the first 4 years means more chances to fortify conservation of forests and build alliances for community awareness, resilience and cooperation.
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