5 million trees will be planted in Central America on June 25th, in a campaign called Reforestando Centroamerica – Reforest Central America – organized by the youth of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Panama. They will be not only plant trees, but they will also monitor their growth! In this country, 5000 trees are to be planted in the mangrove areas, on the coasts and in some towns.

It is hoped that the youth of these nations will get to meet and find a common ground as regard protecting the environment.  It is receiving the support of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, who launched the campaign on April 6^th.

More than 30 youths organizations are joining their efforts in this event that was actually born in Guatemala thanks to the initiative of the Youth Movement Tzuk Aj. This movement just celebrated its 3^rd birthday this year. In Costa Rica, the Federation of the students of the University of Costa Rica (FEUCR) has already started working on the project, and 150 trees have just been planted by volunteers in the private property of one of the professor of the University.  Native species only have been chosen; this is to create an eco symbiotic axis to replicate what nature intends to do, that is to recreate an eco system, rather than just planting trees. The students of the National University of Costa Rica are also going to take part in the project.

This ecological and environmental integration is of highest importance at this day and age. Costa Rica may be more advanced as regard eco-tourism and protection of the environment than its neighbours, but Central America as a whole is loosing its incredible bio diversity at high speed; excessive deforestation is the main problem and that goes beyond borders. Education will hopefully help bring awareness and make a difference. Deforestation to converse in agricultural land for instance or unsustainable timber harvesting for development, often illegal, has to be controlled and stopped. The consequences of such actions are maybe not clear enough to those responsible for them: Central America cuts 390,000 per year, and if this is the official number, it can only mean that in reality the number is a lot higher than this! This represents up to 20% of the global emission of gases that cause the greenhouse effect.

Recently the General Assembly of the United Nations declared the year 2011 the International Year of the Forests. Planting trees must become a habit. It is only fair to fix what we destroyed;  it does not take that much time or effort, yet, the results would be fantastic!

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Filed under: Costa Rica News, Costa Rican Wildlife, Living, Travel on April 17th, 2011