Eco-Ecuador

Collaboration for a Long-Term Sustainable City

With university student’s help, 10% of this coming year’s revegetation planting was completed.

By Clay Plager-Unger | December 5, 2008

November 24-December 5, 2008  Summary: Dryness forces us to water some of the most exposed sites. We did major repair work on the roof of the greenhouse. Many, many, many holes for plants were dug. And we commenced planting season with a group of university students! On Monday, Jaime and I went to the greenhouse to transplant some of the last trees that will be part […]

On Friday we dug the first holes of the year at the Rattys site.

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 21, 2008

November 10-21, 2008  Summary: Trails are cleared and holes are dug at the new revegetation sites in preparation for planting. Jaime and I do some final site acquisition scouting to secure the few remaining locations that will be planted. On Monday we finished opening trails at the Astillero site. We returned Tuesday to construct a Moyuyo stake staircase at the approach, which is rather steep. […]

Each site required five to six days of heavy machete work to be ready for hole-digging.

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 7, 2008

October 20-November 7, 2008  Summary: With new sites for revegetating in 2009 secured, we began breaking trails at three of them. There were celebrations in Bahia for the anniversary of the county and President Correa made another stop in Bahia to check up on the Bahia-San Vicente bridge progress. And I took a trip with Ramon and students to Parque Machililla near Puerto Lopez. The […]

A Slice Through Layers of Days

By Peter Berg | October 25, 2008

Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador October’s gray, overcast skies in coastal Ecuador are generally constant and cover over even sunrise and set (caida del sol or “fall of the sun”). This makes for pleasantly cool weather despite melancholy moods. It has been called “the gringo month” even though tourists are mostly absent because of the resemblance to Seattle or London (and perhaps the tendency to stare ahead […]

An Experience of Social Worth

By Peter Berg | October 17, 2008

Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador Bahia de Caraquez is a working lesson in urban livability that collapsing industrial society urgently needs to adopt. For a transition toward a more sustainable future, new techniques and practices alone aren’t enough. By themselves they give off a chilly contrived feeling that rings false and heightens a sense of displacement rather than belonging. There needs to be a spirit and […]

Introduction to Interview with Maria Soledad Vela About “Rights of Nature” in New Ecuador Constitution

By Peter Berg | October 16, 2008

Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador Ecuador has just ratified a new constitution overflowing with innovations that make it a trail-blazing 21st Century governing document. Environmental awareness and protection are recognized on a particularly high level in response to present day revelations about local destruction of habitat and species as well as planetary climate change. These are covered as extensively as might be hoped for in sections of […]

Thursday we break ground at the first of the new sites for 2009.

By Clay Plager-Unger | September 26, 2008

September 15-26, 2008  Summary: We shift our energies towards securing revegetation sites for planting in the coming rainy season. In the greenhouse seedbeds that were planted a few weeks ago are ready to be transplanted, adding even more trees to the arsenal. Still no new volunteers. On Monday we are at the greenhouse transplanting Guarango, Chirimoya and Cascol trees into three-liter bottles.  Tuesday was for […]

The largest Ceibo tree that any of us have ever seen.

By Clay Plager-Unger | September 12, 2008

September 1-12, 2008  Summary: I return to Bahia from a reverse culture-shock laden vacation to the United States. While I was gone, Jaime held down the fort and was fortunate enough to receive a heavy rain thus saving him from having to water (alone). Despite the lack of volunteer forces, Jaime and I persevere. The rain while I was gone appears to have been a […]

Water is in short supply all over Bahia.

By Clay Plager-Unger | August 18, 2008

August 4-18, 2008  Summary:  Our volunteer numbers continue to dwindle, but we carry on watering. More seeds are collected, prepared and planted in beds in hopes that a bunch more trees will germinate and be ready for planting in 2009. I leave Bahia for a visit back to the US of A and close the doors of the house for a week and a half. Andrew […]

Collecting seeds from the forest.

By Clay Plager-Unger | August 1, 2008

July 21-August 1, 2008  Summary: We spend one week continuing the water routine, then it rains over the weekend and we get to spend the next week in the greenhouse and out in the field collecting seeds. Major progress is made in organizing, planting seeds and transplanting trees in the greenhouse. On Monday we head to the Don Pepe revegetation site and water the trees. From […]