Endanged yellow-naped amazon chicks in their nest on Ometepe Island
Join us for 3 days, participating in parrot conservation and growing your spirit during a mini Nurture Nature Retreat, December 4-6, 2017!
Ometepe Island
There is an island in Lake Nicaragua that is bursting with hope. Recent population studies of the endangered yellow-naped amazon indicate that there might be 1,000 birds there. It's an incredible density of birds. Last year we discovered something even more amazing – the birds are breeding much earlier than anywhere else in their range. This is a scientific marvel! The hard news is that these birds are getting poached for the illegal wildlife trade.
Working together with the LOCOs (Loreros Observando y Conservando en Omtepe) and Flora and Fauna International, One Earth Conservation is studying and protecting these birds, and we'd like you there to witness this incredible story of parrots and people. December is the start of the breeding and field conservation season, and your presence will help animate our conservationists and your contribution of resources (time and donations) will help kick off the project for the year.
LoraKim with members of LOCOs
Who should come? Please come if you would like to contribute to parrot conservation in Latin America and to One Earth Conservation. This is not a onetime event – we hope to build bridges and relationships, which is paramount if we are to save the parrots of Latin America. One Earth’s board members and volunteers will attend, and we encourage past and future donors and volunteers to come as well. This is a 20-year project, as are all our efforts in this region. It takes no less than this commitment to preserve our cherished earth.
What are the costs? You will provide your own transportation to the island, and pay for your own lodging and meals. We will guide you in making these arrangements, as well as reserving space in a hotel. Your estimated cost for transportation to and from the island, food, and lodging is $1,000. For the three days that you are with us, we will provide transportation, logistics, and the guides who will accompany us. We are finalizing the costs for this at this time, however we anticipate that we will ask for a $300 minimum donation in addition to your costs to meet our expenses and grow this conservation project on Ometepe. The donation will be tax deductible, as One Earth Conservation is a nonprofit organization.
What will you do? You will be helping Dr. LoraKim Joyner, who will be there in early December to check on the birds and train the local conservationists in doing wild parrot exams. We plan on slowing down our busy schedule so that we can host visitors to help us with our population monitoring by counting parrots of all kinds, including hundreds of green parakeets. You will also help us examine wild nests and young parrot chicks. You will work side by side with the conservationists known as the LOCOs, sharing their work and lives as you get to know the promise of these dedicated people who are working hard to protect their cherished homeland. In addition, Flora and Fauna will take us to a community that is employing sustainable agricultural practices and preserving their forest. During this time we will also offer a Nurture Nature retreat that invites you to connect ever deeper to nature and birds, increasing your resilience and nourishing you before you head home. We must nurture ourselves if we are to nurture and preserve nature.
LOCOs studying wild yellow-naped amazon chicks
Plan on spending three full days with us, starting the morning of either Monday, December 4 or Tuesday, December 5, 2017 (final start date is to be determined soon). Plan to arrive the day before. We can guide you on how to make arrangements to get to the island, and once there, we will shepherd you through hands-on conservation work. During the middle of the day we will have workshop and retreat experiences that will nourish you, empower you to build a more beautiful world, and teach you about parrot conservation. Our retreat atmosphere is part of our Nurture Nature Program, which grows our five natures: emotional, social, multispecies, ecological, and spiritual intelligence. Come a few days early or stay later – Nicaragua and Ometepe Island are beautiful places to connect to this wondrous earth. You can enjoy the many other opportunities to connect to nature in this region. More details will be forthcoming. Please reserve your spot now by filling out an application we will send to you (space is limited). To apply and for more information, contact us here.
The deadline for reservations is October 15 and for donations is November 15.
Join our team on Ometepe Island. If you come, we can build something great together.
(We'd love for you to help us advertise and let people know about this - here is a flyer)
LOCOs, Flora and Fauna, and wildlife regulatory officers