Students continued to explore the challenges and possibilities for reconciling development and conservation in Ecuador during the second week of the University of Oregon Sustainable Development Study Abroad Program in Bahía. Activities for week two included a visit with local fishermen, tree planting with the National Electric Company, a tour of the Isla Corazon Wildlife Refuge, a trip to the Machalilla National Park and whale-watching […]
This summer Planet Drum hosted the fourth study abroad program with the University of Oregon. The course is called Sustainable Development in Latin America and covers the tensions, challenges, and possibilities for reconciling development and conservation in the dry tropical forest zone, a critically important and globally imperiled ecosystem. Twelve students were accompanied by professor Moriah McGrath on the program. After spending a week taking language classes at […]
Volunteers Nico and Kate helped construct a composting toilet with recycled wood. The design is a simple wood box, open on the bottom, with a toilet seat on top. In the woods near the greenhouse, Orlando and three other volunteers (Laura, Peter, and another Kate) dug a hole approximately 4 ft deep and 2 feet wide in the ground and the wood box placed on […]
June was a particularly productive month with excellent assistance from six volunteers: Mikaela (Finland), Alisa (Switzerland), Kate (England), Colleen (U.S.), Nico (Spain), and Laura (Ecuador). The entire greenhouse area continued to evolve and progress. Space for more trees was increased as tree production expanded. More than 1,000 new trees were transplanted from the seedbeds to bottles, which required cutting all of those bottles, mixing soil […]
A brief bit of background:Planet Drum’s local collaborator from the Astillero Community Greenhouse, José María happens to be the father of another good friend: Chino. Chino is a jack of all trades, who happens to work for Flor María and her son Patricio Tamaríz. Patricio and Flor María were two of Peter Berg’s original contacts in Bahía de Caráquez from before Planet Drum had even […]
Ceibo trees in the region began flowering copiously in late May, which means there is an abundant source of pollen for the regions pollinators. It also means that there should be ample opportunities to collect seeds within a few months. Together with our Apiculture partner Ricardo, we’ve made several wild captures of bee colonies. In many instances honey bees inhabit an area that is frequented […]
Los Algarrobos natural sciences teacher and Planet Drum collaborator Enrique contacted me requesting some soil for a garden project that he had in mind for the school. I suggested that the Planet Drum crew assist with the project and that we would be happy to donate the necessary soil. On this particular Friday, we visited Los Algarrobos school in Canoa for a recycled-tire garden building […]
One of Planet Drum’s original contacts in Bahía is Ramon Cedeño. Ramon owns and runs the Punta Gorda Nature Reserve, where over the years Planet Drum has donated and assisted in planting hundreds of native trees for habitat restoration. We visited Punta Gorda with Ramon to go on a hike up the seasonal creek bed and see if we could find Chirimoya fruits to harvest (for […]
A longtime friend of Planet Drum, Lucas Oshun, has been involved in a myriad of ecological projects over recent years, including directing Global Student Embassy projects, starting a bamboo construction company that donated bamboo houses to earthquake victims, as well as coordinating Dry Tropical Forest research and reforestation initiatives. Lucas is now administrating a new agro-ecology project on a farm near the town of Chone […]
The Community Greenhouse in the Astillero neighborhood continues to expand its seedling and compost production. It is possible that José María, Planet Drum’s contact there, is even more enthusiastic about trees and plants than we are. In his excitement to produce more trees, José María had strewn materials everywhere. There were cut bottles, uncut bottles, piles of soil, transplanted trees, and sacks of sawdust strewn […]