La Costa of Ecuador is truly amazing. We will have three different sites (Bahia, Puerto Lopez, and Ayangue). The first two are in the province of Manabi and the last is in the province of Santa Elena.
These regions are full of natural riches. We will explore the tropical dry forest, the mangrove forest ecosystem, and visit a few islands to see whales, beautiful birds, and sea lions.
We will meet up with various environmental activists of the region trying to preserve their land for future generations and work together on some environmental projects, like beach clean-ups and educational murals.
The first 12 days of the program, we will be in an ecological permaculture farm learning about more sustainable ways of living while doing fun activities like a plantain cooking festival, chocolate making, and several hikes in the nearby forest. In Puerto Lopez and Ayangue, we will be closer to the beach and have some swimming days.
Our first site, Bahia de Caraquez, has been impacted by several natural disasters such as the seasonal El Nino weather phenomenon and a devastating earthquake in 2016. We will be learning how these communities have managed the process of recovery and will talk to young people that survived and stepped in to help their communities.
