Community Center Improvements

In collaboration with University of Washington study abroad students, community members and grade school & high school students prepared the unattractive and bare cement-block walls for the start of their beautification project. The community center is now a much nicer place in which to spend time. The Mastatal community uses its center for meetings, presentations and dances, and is an important community resource. We had some fun days of sanding, wetting and applying a thin layer of cement to smooth out the walls in preparation for paint. MCF helped purchase the paint and community members showed off their amazing artistic skills — they embellished the walls with unique murals. It was incredible to see the students’ imaginations and skills manifest themselves in rainforest scenes on the walls.

See a slide show of the progression of this project here.

MCF Essay Contest

In September 2004, MCF announced an essay contest for residents living around La Cangreja National Park to win a trip with the University of Washington Spring Quarter students and the Solar Energy Institute (SEI) trip to build a wind generator at Dúrika. We had a great response, receiving 13 essays from people between the ages of 15 and 71.

Five local judges read and ranked the essays, including Gustavo Jiménez (the science coordinator for La Cangreja National Park), Robin Nunes (co-owner of Rancho Mastatal) and Professor Susan Bolton, who leads the UW Spring trips.

Follow the links below to read the original essays in Spanish. Spelling and punctuation were kept consistent with the original hand-written essays. Find photos of the presentation to the community here.

• Alexander García went on the SEI trip to Dúrika and helped build the wind generator. Alexander is a familiar face to many visitors in Mastatal as he runs the local bar.
• Mariana Salazar García accompanied the UW spring quarter students to Dúrika. She is the daughter of Juan Luís, a local farmer.
• Kathia Rivera Mora accompanied the UW spring quarter students to Hacienda Barú, Quepos, Manuel Antonio, and the vanilla plantation. She is the daughter of Mirella, the grade school cook.
• Johana Mora accompanied the UW spring quarter students to Monteverde, Palo Verde and Jacó. She is the daughter of Maritza, the woman who provides milk and eggs to Rancho Mastatal.
• Keivin Randall Cascante is from San Miguel. He accompanied the September UW class to Playa Teresa, an area in the process of being restored and an important turtle nesting site.

The library is a long-term project that will take approximately two years to complete. Future donations will go towards stocking the library and paying for a part-time local librarian. With regards to educational field trips, MCF hopes to sponsor these on a yearly basis. The composting toilet projects will be joint ventures between local residents and student volunteers who are participating in a spring quarter class sponsored by the University of Washington.

Forthcoming projects may include but will not be limited to:

• providing English classes to members of the regional rural communities.
• supporting and organizing talks and conferences on sustainable agriculture.
• sponsoring and hosting workshops on the use of alternative energy such as micro-hydro and solar.
• helping to educate local community members to become responsible guides and researchers in the national park.
• constructing a local medical clinic, using natural, local and sustainable building materials.