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Special Report |
LAST UPDATE January 10, 2006
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| November 13, 2005 |
Saving La Campana National Park |
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| The Chilean Palm tree, an endemic species which can only be found between the 4th and 6th regions of Chile, is currently being protected in La Campana National Park, located in the 5th region. |
While onboard, guest educators Andrea Alvarez and Bruno Serrano helped raise awareness about a campaign in their homeland Chile to save a national park from being privatized. Over 900 hectares of La Campana National Park is currently in danger of being sold to private tenders to use for private farming and cattle rearing. The Park was originally founded to protect the prized Chilean palm tree, which is endemic to Chile. The tree is cut to extract its rich honey and flavorsome nuts, and dies in the process. |
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| A poster made for Peace Boat counterpart organization in Chile, CODEFF to show solidarity for their campaign |
One of the oldest environmental organizations in Chile is CODEFF. This NGO is working to raise awareness of this conservation issue amongst the Chilean public, and to lobby the government to withdraw intentions to sell the land.
Andrea believes that the law to protect the environment in Chile is very weak, and does not accommodate for the different ways of thinking of the indigenous tribes. “For us Mapuche people, land is something with a very deep definition. Life came from land and this land grows plants that sustains us humans, and our domestic animals. It’s also a place that God gave us. To protect it is to keep our God from being angry,” she said. |
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| Eco Team leaders collecting signatures to save La Campana National Park during afternoon tea onboard the ship |
Onboard Peace Boat, over 500 signatures were collected in a petition to save La Campana National Park from being sold to private land owners. These signatures were passed over to CODEFF to support their endeavor on November 12 when approximately 50 Peace Boat participants visited the National Park to learn more about it through a hiking expedition.
For more information about CODEFF, please visit: www.codeff.cl |
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