T
here was 1987. A swedish school teacher doing volunteering research in the Monteverde’s Cloud Forest, Costa Rica, became concerned about the destruction seen around the reserve. She knew that there were lots of trouble for the scientist and conservationist to stop the deforestation, since the lands were unprotected, and the goverment had no money to invest in the purchase of such a big area.
Later, back in Sweden, she told her class about what she saw, and, an idea became bigger. The children decided to collect money and save the Rainforest! One year later, they were able to purchase 14 hectares ( about 31 acres). The Children’s Eternal Rainforest was born!
Some time had passed, and thousands of girls and boys from all over the world were able to buy more than…23 000 hectares!!!!!! That is the size of this protected forest, now managed and sponsored by the Unicef and the Monteverde’s Conservation League.
Nowadays, as a tour guide, I have met some of the kids whom helped the Rainforest to grow along the years. Some guys of about my age; coming to Costa Rica, many of them for the first time, with the though of knowing
what they did.
And, there is something magic in this place. Miles and miles of protected forest cover now what it was nothing but pastures; thousands and thousands of colorfull birds fly on the tree tops, tens of thousands of different sounds remain us that the forest is alive and, to me, this wildlife is the best pay for my efforts as a child, when I was collecting money…to buy a square feet for the forest, 25 years ago…