Camino Claro Blog

Dear Raphel ,

Happy 26th birthday!

I hope you had a feliz día , even though I made you get out of the water for your “surprise cake party.” I hope you forgive me.

Sincerely, and with LOTS of love,

Haley

As you might remember from one of our posts back in May, the pending installation of the tuna farms in the Golfo Dulce continues to be a great threat to our home in many ways. Thus, the battle continues…

The Corrupt Tuna Project

Last June, MINAET (The Costa Rican Ministry of Environment) approved and granted most of the necessary permits for Granjas Atuneras, S.A. to install the destructive tuna farms in the Golfo Dulce. However, MINAET acted prematurely and suspiciously, as it was soon discovered that the permits were illegally issued. Business was conducted in violation of the Supreme Court’s decision to put the project on hold until ocean currents have been thoroughly studied and it has been established that fecal matter from the fish would indeed not enter the Golfo Dulce.

This study was recently completed and apparently it was altered in order to show the preferred results; that the ocean currents will not bring waste into the Gulf. This is, of course, ridiculous because it is common knowledge that our ocean currents go both ways and the prevailing winds are onshore, coming from the south and pushing the surface water into the gulf.

So, with the study results against us and the Ministry of Environment obviously working for bribes, Pavones’ community members have come together to form an official Anti-Tuna Farm Association, established at the beginning of this month.

Pavones Community Fights Corruption

The Anti-Tuna Farm Association represents the voice of all community members; locals, foreigners, and most importantly, the Guaymi Indigenous population. The Guaymi make up 60% of the voters in our district and they see the project as an invasion of their territory. The establishment of such a heterogeneous Association will allow us to more powerfully oppose Granjas Atuneras, S.A.

A few weeks ago I spoke with Vela Miles, one of the “movers and shakers” here in Pavones. She deserves many thanks for her hard work and dedication to the tuna project battle, but being a head member of the Anti-Tuna Farm Association is just one way she is invaluable to this community. Vela stated that now that the Association has legal status they are in the process of “asking the municipality of Golfito to approve the popular vote (plebiscito) in the district of Pavones. This allows Pavones to vote and voice their position. That is our constitutional right.” The municipality cannot install the tuna farms until Pavones votes on it.

As of now, the Association will continue to send letters to the municipality and work to educate this region on the negative affects of the Tuna Farms. The only thing preventing the installation of the Tuna Farms are the permits from the municipality. Although everything else has been approved, Pavones is still putting up a hard fight against the Granjas Atuneras.

ECC Student Speaks Out

All members- and all ages!- of the community will be affected by the impending tuna farms if it goes through. Below, 9-year-old ECC student, Leilani, voices her opinion about the impending tuna project: check out an excerpt of her very well-written (did I mention she is an ECC student?:) letter to Costa Rican President Oscar Arias.

“The other day I went surfing here in Pavones. It was such a beautiful day. The water was clear and pretty. I saw a manta ray jumping, a pelican diving in for his breakfast, and a sea turtle floating by. When I went under the water, I could hear the whales singing. Have you ever heard whales? They sing the most beautiful songs! As I came up from under the water, I had a terrible thought… Will there come a day when this Gulf that I love so much be so contaminated from the tuna farms that the manta rays will no longer jump? Will there be a day that the pelicans no longer come here to fish for their breakfast? Will there be a day that the turtles no longer want to lay their eggs on our beaches? Will there be a day when the whales no longer want to come and sing their sweet songs?
I hope with all my heart that this day will never come! This is why I am writing you today. I am asking you to please, please help us to stop the tuna farms from coming here!!! Please use all your power as president to stop this project from contaminating our beautiful Golfo Dulce.

Thank you for you time,
Leilani McGonagle
PS. I heard you recently were sick with Swine Flu. I hope you are feeling better!”

It’s never too late to make a donation to this important cause- EVERYTHING COUNTS. Thanks for your support,

Sincerely,
Raphel & Haley

Feria Multicultural

The design of every small village in Central America, it seems, is based on the central soccer field called the plaza. Even traveling through the tiniest of rural villages, I have always seen the plaza as the center of town activity. In Pavones, our plaza is the stage for not only weekend soccer games, but also elementary school P.E. activities, young children learning to ride their bikes without training wheels, late night hang-outs, as well as cloud-gazing and the general relaxation in the sun.

The multicultural fair that took place in Pavones last week was a brand new way to utilize our town square. It was a delightful celebration that sought to bring all parts of the community together and celebrate the multiculturalism of the Pavones area and, on a broader scale, Costa Rica as a whole.

Organized by the supervisor of the school district, each primary school was asked to research a different Costa Rican province, and then create an aesthetically pleasing booth with pictures, objects, and food from that area.  Additionally, the myriad of foreign residents that make up the semi-permanent population of Pavones showed up to represent their nation, thus, producing a bona fide multicultural event. There was even an appearance by the Guaymi to represent the nearby Indigenous Reservation and Pretoma, the Costa Rican ocean conservation group.

Below is the Puntarenas booth (Pavones’ province). Yes, we have a lot of bananas and coconuts here if you’ve never seen them before.

Some more regions represented: I was impressed by the creativity and color that went into the booths and extent to which they were thoughtfully organized.

Other activities that toom place were children’s art tables, speeches, marimba music, and dancing. Photos below: Baile Típico of Costa Rica and the Guaymi Indigenous.

Last but not least, allow me to introduce our NEW pre-kindergarten teacher, Lisa! She took our adorable pre-k class to the celebration, particularly fitting because this class is the most culturally diverse of all the ECC classes.

We’ll see you next year, as this will hopefully become an annual event!

Pictures: Lisa

One step closer to an eco-friendly community

I hope we didn’t give the impression that getting Pavones to evolve into a recycle-minded community was going to be an easy or quick process. Did we? Haha. Well, don’t worry, we ARE making progress at an expectedly slow pace in this tiny, rural beach town. As usual we have big dreams but we have learned to be patient as everything falls into its place as it should.

The good news is that the mayor has approved and agreed to fund a community recycling facility in Pavones! Apparently the paperwork is being processed and we are on our way. Though this sounds very positive, it will be a little while until we actually see any results. It is sort of funny but the local government has an awesome ability to operate so slowly that it almost seems as though they are moving in the other direction.

Since the construction and implementation of a real functioning recycling center in Pavones might be a complicated and tedious process, Haley and I have found a way to appease our dreams…

Escuela Camino Claro now has its own (small and adorable) recyclng center!

We are able to recycle plastic, glass, and aluminum cans at our “center” (look at the pictures and you might question whether or not I can call it a “center” yet).  Haley and I have been teaching our kids about recycling and making sure they understand WHY it is important. I don’t think they understand the concept just yet but at least they are aware.

Currently, we are still collecting the town’s recycling at our building once a month. The truck is scheduled to come and pick it up…yesterday. So, we’ll see how long these black plastic bags and pyramid stacked wine bottles adorn our building. Hopefully they are picked up sooner than later because I am pretty sure that ALL of tourists must think that Haley and I REALLY like to drink.

On that note, stay posted for more updates in the near future!

Go, Raphel, Go!

It’s almost 10 pm on a Monday night. Eyelids are getting too heavy to look at the fluorescent computer screen much longer. Way past my bedtime, especially on a school night (notice fragmented sentences). Nevertheless, my lemongrass ginger tea and I are still perched on the living room couch finding humor in close-up pictures of Raphel playing soccer from last weekend. At the moment she is walking around the house in a tired haze too. Our conversation just went something like this:

Haley: Raphel, I’m putting a picture of you in the blog

Raphel: Blog? Oh, yeah, okay

Haley: Do you have any insightful quotes to include about your game?

Raphel: uuuhmm, “ECC teachers’ community involvement transcends the classroom.” (Then walks off to her room)

Haley: Wow, eloquent, well said. I think I should not be trying to do something requiring brain cells at this time of night. I’m losing it.

Run like the wind Raphel! Transcend the classroom! I am your biggest fan.

Anyway, too bad they lost… and good thing the waves were breaking on the other side of the soccer field (they only THOUGHT we were diligently watching the game!).

Anti-Tuna Farm Campaign Continues

Costa Rica’s first national rally held in Pavones on May 23^rd & 24^th

What an amazing event Pavones had the privilege of hosting a few weeks ago. The ¡No a las Granjas Atuneras! spirit was heavy in the air as hundreds of people joined Pavones residents in raising awareness and funds to halt the construction of tuna farms in the Golfo Dulce. It was a phenomenal success and, with a few more comparable fiestas, as well as increased signatures on Pretoma’s petition, newspaper articles, and press time, this exploitative project may actually be immobilized.

Pavones says NO

But first, a bit of political background…

Costa Rica’s Ministry of Environment (MINAET) has recently given the approval to Granjas Atuneras S.A. of Golfito to install tuna farms in the mouth of the Golfo Dulce. The tropical fjord is a pristine natural resource that is being threatened by this project. Fishing and tourism, the two economic strengths in the Golfo Dulce zone, will be gravely affected as well, just because some money-hungry individuals want to get rich harvesting and exporting tuna. Additionally, the project only has an 8-year life span (earning Granjas Atuneras 20 million a year!) until natural tuna stocks become exhausted. The Constitutional Court actually suspended the advancement of the project back in May 2007 because there was not enough evidence that this project would not pollute and destroy the gulf’s natural resources (duh- why wouldn’t it?!). Apparently MINAET has not heeded this suspension and the concerned communities are speaking out against any further action. Pavones is among these communities, demonstrated when we gathered more than 700 signatures for the anti-tuna farm letter that Pretoma, Costa Rica’s ocean conservation group, delivered to President Oscar Arias on May 28th. You can see their article covering the event by scrolling down to the links below.

Pavones proper only has a few hundred residents, so this high number of signatures should really tell you something about the general sentiment and passion for this issue.

Now, for some remarks on our delightful grass roots festival…

Children’s inspirational banner

¡Fiesta Fiesta! The best kind of party

Pavones has undoubtedly never experienced such community vigor and heated excitement as it did a few weeks ago. Granted, Escuela Camino Claro has only been here for a few years but everyone definitely agrees this was a first. After witnessing so many people join together with their knowledge, time, and energy (not to mention organizing and coordinating skills), I realize how proud I am to be a part of this diverse and special community. There seemed to be no dividing lines between Pavones’ locals, foreign residents, and surfer tourists as we all danced together to the live music and enjoyed the various activities during a sunny weekend in a remote corner of the world. Many members of the Guaymi indigenous group trekked into town from the reservation with their families to show their support.

¡De verdad, un día histórica para Pavones!

Pretoma’s presence at the festival was fundamental in spreading awareness to many parts of the community that otherwise would have stayed uninformed about the issue. Similarly, national press, including Tico Times and Repretel, were kept busy taking pictures and conducting interviews.

A team surf competition, a fashion show, an up-the-river boot race, garage and bake sales, children’s activities, and soccer games were some of the many events that took place at the festival. The ECC teachers failed to put together a team for the competition, but, needless to say, we were happy to help with trilingual signage (English, Spanish, and Guaymi!) and getting some of our students involved in the banner-painting project. This is obviously what we do best since, well, we are an English school, not a surf school. One of the most remarkable parts of the weekend, though, was the impressive lineup of music that got the whole town shaking. Indeed, a nice break from Reggaetón, as well as some cultural exposure than Pavones is not normally used to. Costa Rican marimba music, a bit of reggae, and San Jose’s Zege African percussion band with their incredible dancers were the highlights, as well as the traditional mariachi music and baile típico. I will never forget the look of amazement on people’s faces as they watched the beautiful, painted African dancers. It was a new, positive experience for many.

Close to home for two ECC teachers

After ECC’s Pura Vida Fundraiser last January, Raphel and I almost had an anxiety attack as soon as we heard the word “fundraiser” mentioned a few months ago. For those who don’t know about this annual Eugene, Oregon fundraiser and silent auction and that a large portion of ECC’s yearly expenses has been supported by it, feel free to check out the pictures on our website and the YOUTUBE video (links below).

So, did we want to be on the committee for the No a Las Granjas Atuneras Festival? Not at the moment, thanks- but we will definitely educate our students and get them involved as much as possible! After several Spanglish conversations on the topic and some artistic free time during class (art is a good stimulus for learning such things as colors), we arrived on the day of the Festival with manageable blood pressure and were able to enjoy the party from an outsider’s perspective. Knowing what it takes to plan and coordinate such an event, I have the utmost respect for everyone involved. Props to you all and thank you for bringing us all together! Sure, we don’t get a lot of live music or community/cultural events down here, but a few weeks ago I fell in love all over again with this magical place and all the people that coexist here. We must never take our lives here for granted because it may all change in the near future.

¡No a Las Granjas Atuneras!

Useful Links

• Pretoma’s website

www.pretoma.org   

• Pretoma’s article covering this event

www.pretoma.org/category/press-releases/

• ECC’s 2009 Pura Vida Fundraiser & Silent Auction PHOTO GALLERY

www.caminoclaro.org/photo-galleries/pura-vida-fundraiser.php

• ECC’s 2009 Pura Vida Fundraiser & Silent Auction YOUTUBE VIDEO

Part 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8o4MYJqscQ

         Part 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oDjMb5Vq5I    

Activities for everyone

The Green Team (Equipo Verde) kept everything tidy and promoted recycling

Something our town, and its sea wall, has surely never witnessed before: Fashion show!

The little ones strutting their stuff with Guaymi typical dress

Thank you Jessie Travis for your photos J

Now we can say we’ve successfully pulled of a bilingual and multicultural baby shower. Add that to ECC’s resume!

Figuring out how to explain the next baby shower game in two languages

Mama- to- be, Katie, shoveling cotton balls into a bowl with a blindfold on. Apparently this type of humor is cross-cultural.

The real campaign starts- ¡No a Las Granjas Atuneras!

Many of you are already aware of the impending threat of the introduction of a massive tuna farm in the Golfo Dulce. If this is not the case, please read on to further education yourself about the current state of the crisis and find out how you can help us here in Pavones.

All of us at Escuela Camino Claro felt it is of the utmost importance to reach out to our supporters and donors because this is an issue happening literally in Pavones’ front yard, thus directly affecting our thriving Community Education Center.

What are the tuna farms?

­­­­­­­­­­­­­ Granjas Atuneras S.A. is a company of Venezuelan and Spanish interests, which is looking to place between 10 and 100 cages just outside of the mouth of the Gulfo Dulce. The cages measure 50 meters in diameter and 20 meters in depth and would be positioned a few kilometers off the beach. The tuna would be corralled hundreds of miles out to sea by helicopters, nets, dynamite and speedboats and then dragged back to the Golfo Dulce.

The project would offer little if any economic feedback for the rural communities that surround the Golfo Dulce (us!), but rather benefit a handful of wealthy individuals. Might I interject and say we, as Golfo Dulce residents, don’t even get a bite of tuna: Japan will sure be enjoying a lot of fresh sashimi on our behalf. What’s more- because I assure you we can live without fat, farm-fed tuna on our tables- the project threatens to disrupt the gulf’s delicate ecosystem, a natural resource that supports local fisheries and sustainable tourism opportunities. Fishermen will loose their livelihood, marine life will either be caught in the nets and inadvertently killed or slowly murdered by nitrogen byproducts, and concentrated amounts of tuna carcasses will attract sharks. Not so much fun for two ECC teachers who like to surf and are scared of sharks.

Survey results of the local population show an overwhelming anti-tuna farm sentiment; however, with few expendable resources to allocate to derailing the project, more powerful political and economical intentions are driving the proposal closer to implementation.

YES, IT’S AS BAD AS IT SOUNDS. This is not what we want to see every morning when we wake up…

What can we do to stop it?

Awareness, awareness, and more awareness. The original goal was to finance a referendum that would start the process of denying the project. This was declared ineffective, though, because the timing is too late. Those of you who donated to the fund- do not fret! Your contribution was donated directly to Pretoma (www.pretoma.org), the non-profit ocean conservation group leading the anti-tuna farm campaign. They will use 100% of the money for other attorney fees related to this cause. Most recently, MINAET (Costa Rica’s Ministry of Environment, Energy, and Telecommunications) has just approved the project and now it’s in the hands of Granjas Atuneras, S.A., awaiting final approval.

Pretoma has been a champion but we need more awareness, support and funding to confront the political interests that are letting this project move forward. Share this, get others involved and let’s step up to protect our waters. It’s more important than ever to get involved and SAY NO to GRANJAS ATUNERAS!

All of this information, and a lot more, is available on Pretoma’s website. They have recently launched a “No Tuna Farms” Campaign:

http://www.pretoma.org/no-tuna-farms-campaign-launchedarranco-la-ca

How can you help? DONATE!

You can donate through ECC’s paypal account available through our website www.caminoclaro.org. Also, Pretoma is accepting donations through it’s online “click-and-pledge” secure donation software, accessible from the website’s main page, www.pretoma.org. We thank you for your concern and are grateful to those who have already made a contribution.

2009 anti-tuna farm campaign festival in Pavones

Most of the community of Pavones is currently wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of planning a “Save Our Gulfo Dulce!” fundraiser for next weekend. Attracting the media and important political figures, such as the mayor of Golfito, is the most important thing we as a community can do at the moment. It’s been remarkable to see the preparation take place over the last month and witness people coming out of the woodwork to help and donate in any way they can. Truly though, in the three years I’ve been here I have never seen so many members of this diverse community come together for one shared cause. It’s amazing, hopeful, and inspiring.

Please check back in a few weeks and I will let you know how it goes. Keep your fingers crossed that Raphel and I win something in the gunny sack race, fishing contest, or ECC team surf competition (we try to be involved in extracurricular events). Regardless of what happens next weekend, you can depend on some pretty cool pictures to be posted, thanks to our roommate and pro photographer, Jessie. We are currently trying to convince her to stay in Pavones, maybe in the future ECC could afford to hire her back as our personal photographer? Ha ha, right, that’ll be the day.

See you soon!

Planning, planning, planning…