Trees for Costa Rican Agroforestry
Donation protected
Mission:
It is the goal of Dasha Gousseva, Cordelia Dingle, and Megan Kern to help improve agricultural sustainability in Costa Rica and educate local and visiting groups on the importance of reforestation efforts near Cloudbridge Nature Reserve through the McGill University sect of Borderless World Volunteers. To do so, we will be spending 6 weeks in the Costa Rican highlands interacting with the local community, with the goal of learning from their traditions and applying other outside research to begin agroforestry "pilot plots" on their lands. "Pilot plots" serve as exemplars of agroforestry and practices, which will help promote more sustainable agriculture throughout the region presently and in the future. Cloudbridge Nature Reserve is an environmentally-focused center in San Gerardo de Rivas, Costa Rica whose mission is to conserve the natural resources found in Costa Rica for present and future generations by using green energy, minimizing their carbon footprint, protecting their land and its inhabitants, promoting plant based diets, and limiting waste produced both by the community and the facility.
Agroforestry:
Agroforestry is a method of practicing sustainable agriculture in which trees are grown alongside crops or pastures. This technique has a variety of benefits, including increased biodiversity and decreased erosion, as well as improved yields for farmers. Land users at all scales benefit from social, economic and environmental aspects. Particularly, agroforestry is crucial to small-scale farmers living in rural areas such as San Gerardo de Rivas because it enhances their food supply, income, and health. Improved moisture retention and decreased wind erosion improves the crop supply. Livestock production becomes more efficient because less food is needed to provide for livestock that is under less weather stress. Trees and shrubs provide profit to farmers if they harvest them for fruit or mature wood. Overall, agroforestry provides numerous benefits that more traditional methods of farming cannot hope to match.
What You Can Do to Help:
While locals may find a comprehensive education on agroforestry informative, it is by far the donation and implementation of resources to help them actually begin the process of converting to more sustainable agricultural practices that will make the most impact. We've got the implementation covered, but we need a little help with the donation. All money donated to this campaign will go directly to buying trees to plant to help the local community utilize the many benefits of agroforestry. Your donations will have a lasting impact with the local community for many years to come, and no amount is too small!
It is the goal of Dasha Gousseva, Cordelia Dingle, and Megan Kern to help improve agricultural sustainability in Costa Rica and educate local and visiting groups on the importance of reforestation efforts near Cloudbridge Nature Reserve through the McGill University sect of Borderless World Volunteers. To do so, we will be spending 6 weeks in the Costa Rican highlands interacting with the local community, with the goal of learning from their traditions and applying other outside research to begin agroforestry "pilot plots" on their lands. "Pilot plots" serve as exemplars of agroforestry and practices, which will help promote more sustainable agriculture throughout the region presently and in the future. Cloudbridge Nature Reserve is an environmentally-focused center in San Gerardo de Rivas, Costa Rica whose mission is to conserve the natural resources found in Costa Rica for present and future generations by using green energy, minimizing their carbon footprint, protecting their land and its inhabitants, promoting plant based diets, and limiting waste produced both by the community and the facility.
Agroforestry:
Agroforestry is a method of practicing sustainable agriculture in which trees are grown alongside crops or pastures. This technique has a variety of benefits, including increased biodiversity and decreased erosion, as well as improved yields for farmers. Land users at all scales benefit from social, economic and environmental aspects. Particularly, agroforestry is crucial to small-scale farmers living in rural areas such as San Gerardo de Rivas because it enhances their food supply, income, and health. Improved moisture retention and decreased wind erosion improves the crop supply. Livestock production becomes more efficient because less food is needed to provide for livestock that is under less weather stress. Trees and shrubs provide profit to farmers if they harvest them for fruit or mature wood. Overall, agroforestry provides numerous benefits that more traditional methods of farming cannot hope to match.
What You Can Do to Help:
While locals may find a comprehensive education on agroforestry informative, it is by far the donation and implementation of resources to help them actually begin the process of converting to more sustainable agricultural practices that will make the most impact. We've got the implementation covered, but we need a little help with the donation. All money donated to this campaign will go directly to buying trees to plant to help the local community utilize the many benefits of agroforestry. Your donations will have a lasting impact with the local community for many years to come, and no amount is too small!
Organizer
Megan Kern
Organizer
Cattown, NY